.CLUB CEO talks about the Launch.
In a live presentation recorded in Webex for an audience of Ukraine programmers, and technology professionals at GeeksforLess, Colin Campbell (CEO), along with Dirk Bhaghat (CTO) present their vision for .CLUB.
The topics included:
The history of how .CLUB and how it was won in auction.
Why the CEO chose to target .CLUB in particular.
How .CLUB and other top level domains will change the way the internet works.
And the future vision of a platform for clubs and associations.
As the timeframe for the launch of new gTLD’s draws closer it is great to see more mainstream publications covering the domain namespace. After all, those of us in the industry exist within a bit of a fishbowl, yet for the new gTLD’s to truly be successful mainstream business and consumer awareness is most important. According to The New Yorker,
Suddenly reorganizing the way we navigate the web with new strings like .guru, .club, or .google might seem frivolous or strange, but entities like ICANN and its stakeholders insist that they will make the Web more intuitive and user-friendly…
We of course agree about the opportunity to improve the web with more relevant names, and we are pleased to see .CLUB mentioned as an example. Verticalized generic TLD’s like .CLUB can give companies and individuals that missed the boat on getting the right .com a second chance and the opportunity get a name that can actually offer more meaning (and thus potential marketing value) than a plain old .com or .biz. Names like book.club and poker.club immediately tell you that the web site reflects people coming together around shared interests and passions.
If you are visiting this blog you are probably well aware that there is an invasion coming our way. It is not the British, nor is it the Italians (as the clever FIAT commercial below would have you believe). No, if Paul Revere were here, and if he was paying attention to the Internet, he’d be riding through the streets of your town declaring “the TLD‘s are coming, the TLD’s are coming!
The Name’s The Thing
It is true that we are about to be invaded by hundreds of new Top Level Domain extensions. Some are obvious choices such as .web, .app and .shop, and some are a bit more obscure like .WTF or .Ninja. While some companies have gone after dozens if not hundreds of new names (read Donuts, Google, Amazon, TLDH, Unregistry, etc.), we have been singularly focused on one word: CLUB.
Why .CLUB?
There are millions of clubs reasons we are excited to be the registry for .CLUB. Not only is “CLUB” a global word, with the same spelling and meaning all over the world, but “CLUB” adds meaning and marketing value to any word that precedes it. Book.com might be a place to buy books (in fact, it redirects to BarnesandNoble.com). Book.club immediately resonates as a category killer for people who are passionate about books. As an example of how pervasive the word “club” is, take another look at the FIAT commercial below. In a quick scene, once it is known the “Italians” are coming, they switch a sign from “Pub” to “Club.” “Pub” was boring. “Club” made it fresh and exciting, and added meaning. The sexy and stylish Italians would be excited to be part of a club. We are too.
Jeff Sass is .CLUB’s Chief Marketing Officer. You can follow him on Twitter at @sass
.CLUB at Durban with Alina (Head of HR)
.Club today signed a contract with ICANN to sponsor the next 4 ICANN conferences including Durban, South Africa. .Club believes that it is important to introduce this new top level domain to the internet community and work closely with ICANN to ensure that we manage the launch of this name in a responsible and transparent manner. If you happen to be in Durban, stop by the booth and join the .club.
.CLUB CEO Colin Campbell and CMO Jeff Sass appeared on the Internet Law Talk podcast, hosted by Howard Greenstein and David Mitnick of DomainSkate. The hosts ask Colin and Jeff about the successful bid to obtain the .CLUB new gTLD, and how things will change in the domain world with the introduction of new extensions such as .CLUB. Colin and Jeff talk about the strategy for introducing .CLUB and making it easy for everyone to come together around their interests and passions.
Company also completes $7 Million funding to build registry
for clubs all over the world
FORT LAUDERDALE, FL – June 6, 2013 — The Internet domain game got a new player today as .Club Domains, LLC has won the rights to the new generic top level domain (gTLD) name .CLUB. The .CLUB name was obtained in the first private auction to be completed since ICANN began the new gTLD process and signals a historic step forward as the global Internet expands beyond the current 21 generic top-level domain names, including .com and .net.
The company also announced that it has exercised its option to complete a $7 million funding round, paving the way for .Club’s CEO Colin Campbell, the founder of Tucows and Hostopia, to bring his experience building and growing successful technology and Internet companies to this next frontier of Internet domains.
“We are thrilled to have won the first gTLD private auction and now be in a position to ensure that .CLUB is one of the first new generic domain names to come to market worldwide,” said Campbell. “We believe that very few new domain names carry the inherent marketing message and global recognition that the name ‘club’ represents. What .COM has done for companies, .CLUB will do for membership organizations of all sizes.” Campbell noted that .CLUB has consistently been among the top 20 new generic TLD’s across numerous pre-registration sites.
With the auction for the name now complete, subject to ICANN application approval, .CLUB will be among the first new generic TLD’s to come to market. Domains like http://www.golf.club, http://www.poker.club, and http://www.book.club should hit the market in late 2013 or early 2014. In addition to acting as the worldwide .CLUB registry, the company has plans to offer .CLUB domain name registrants a web and mobile social platform designed specifically for member engagement and management, making it easy for clubs of any kind to establish themselves on the internet.
“I created .Club Domains with the vision to help bring together people who have similar ideas, hobbies, or interests and create the easiest way to find, join or start a club on the internet,” added Campbell. “Names with the .CLUB extension will allow any kind of affinity group, hobbyists, sports enthusiasts and more to easily find or create a site where like-minded people can come together, get information and share interests.”
Campbell, the founder of Tucows and Hostopia, is a Toronto-born serial entrepreneur based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. .CLUB is one of the new top level domain names applied for since ICANN (the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) opened the application process in January 2012. The other participants in the .CLUB auction were Donuts Inc, who has applied for 306 new gTLD names, and Merchant Law Group, who applied for eight domains. .CLUB is the only name applied for by .Club Domains. Major companies and brands including, Google, Amazon, Nike and others have also applied for new gTLD names.
About .Club Domains, LLC
Led by Internet entrepreneur Colin Campbell, whose prior successes include Tucows Interactive and Hostopia.com, .Club Domains, LLC was formed for the purpose of becoming the .CLUB gTLD registry. Fully understanding the inherent marketing value of a .CLUB domain for any membership organization, .Club Domains is also building a comprehensive social platform for club management. .Club Domains is a one-stop shop for clubs of all sizes to secure a great domain, grow club membership, improve member engagement and reduce management costs. By combining an easy to use web services platform with a top level domain based on a globally recognized term, .CLUB is “the easiest way to find, join or start a club.” More information and pre-registration of .CLUB domains is available now at http://www.dotclub.com.
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Contact Information:
Bridgette King
For .Club Domains Public Relations
954.937.9616
Bridgette@getthescoop.com
(Fort Lauderdale, Florida. May 29th, 2013) .Club Domains, LLC an applicant for the new top level domain, .CLUB, has signed the applicant auction agreement with Innovative Auctions Limited from Hong Kong to participate in an auction in early June. .Club Domains, LLC is currently in contention for “.CLUB” with Koko Manor, LLC who’s parent is Donuts, Inc. and Merchant Law Group, LLC.
According to .Club Domain, LLC’s founder Colin Campbell, “From the beginning of the ICANN process for new gTLD’s we have been focused on obtaining the .Club name, and we are looking forward to resolving contention through a private auction. Win or lose, we believe this private auction approach allows us to either acquire the name at a fair market value, or be fairly compensated for our efforts.”
The company’s founder added, “We are happy to announce the successful raise of 3.5 million dollars for the purpose of acquiring and launching the .CLUB name.” The funding was raised in a private placement sold to “accredited investors” as defined in Rule 501 of Regulation D under the securities act.
About .Club Domains, LLC
Led by Internet entrepreneur Colin Campbell, whose prior successes include Tucows Interactive and Hostopia.com, .Club Domains, LLC was formed for the purpose of becoming the “.CLUB” gTLD registry.
Jeff Sass, an experienced technology, mobile and entertainment executive has joined .CLUB. He has co-founded and run mobile commerce and technology companies and he has written and produced for film and television.
Jeff is co-founder of Social Object Factory and recently served as VP, Chief Evangelist for mobile entertainment company Myxer. A frequent speaker and panelist at mobile, music and digital media events, Jeff has had articles published in AdAge Digital, DMNews, Mobile Marketer, iMedia Connection, Forbes and others. Jeff has served on the MMA’s Education and Evangelism Committee and is a founding Board Member of the Mobile Internet Content Coalition (MICC). He is also an instructor for the University of San Francisco’s online mobile marketing program.
“We couldn’t be more pleased to have someone with his knowledge and experience in marketing join the club.” states Colin Campbell, CEO of .CLUB Domains, LLC. Jeff will be running the sponsorship in Prague. Feel free to stop by the booth and meet our latest addition to the .CLUB
A recognized blogger and social media enthusiast, Jeff served as a Sony DigiDad and an Intel Advisor. He has been co-editor and writer for Dadomatic.com since 2008 and is a co-host of the Cast of Dads podcast. Jeff’s blogs include Sassholes.com, SocialNetworkingRehab.com and WunderkindPodcast.com. For more info than you can ever need about Jeff, please visit www.jeffreysass.com.
Jeff joins our seasoned executive team including Howard Bell, former V.P. Operations Hostopia, Steve Gallers, former CFO at Myxer, and Dirk Bhagat, former CTO at Hostopia.
.CLUB 