Asking a prospective date for a phone number is so last century. Starting in December, it'll be 'what's your dot tel?' Owning your own dot tel domain is considered to be "a new communications 'hub' for individuals and businesses that will enable secure sharing of contact information and true personalisation of online services".
There's a new online gold rush gathering momentum as pre-registration ramps up for the Internet's new .tel domain that lets individuals, companies and organizations store all their contact information in a virtual phone book for life...
Or not, as the case may be since the .tel service also lets users decide how much contact information they want to share and who they want to share it with. It can include everything from a home or office phone number, to a mobile phone, email, Facebook, Twitter or any of the increasing number of ways people choose to stay in touch. Unlike a phone book or a business card that can be outdated the minute someone moves or changes jobs, a .tel identity can be updated anytime.
In a customized twist on the old practice of an unlisted phone number, just like Facebook you can choose to share information with friends, keeping it hidden from others. Or you can share certain contact info with acquaintances and clients, saving your secret home cell phone number for only close friends and family. For people you really don't want to hear from or pesky telemarketers you can send them on a wild goose chase by giving them bogus contact information. You can also map your location, a plus for businesses that can direct customers straight to their door with nothing more than a .tel name.
"At a fairly straightforward level it is a way for you to give someone your contact information just by giving them your .tel name," said John Demco, co-found and director of Webnames.ca and the man known as the godfather of .CA for his work in creating the Internet's .ca country code top-level domain for Canada.
"If you gave me your .tel name, I would be able to put that into my cell phone and I'd be able to contact you automatically with whatever contact information you have put with that."
The virtual contact link, available for businesses starting in December and for individuals from Feb. 3 opens up a whole new subdivision of lucrative cyberspace real estate. Just as .com domain names were snapped up and resold at huge profits, there is an expectation that companies that are slow to put a cyberlock on their .tel address may find themselves paying a premium to someone who has snapped it up.
The registration is staggered into three stages to forestall some of the rush to stake claims and early birds who want to protect their contact identities will pay a premium to do so.
Would be .tel holders must register their .tel name with a registrar like EuroDNS, which will start pre-booking today, October 21st. In a first-come, first served process, pre-booking is on for the three phases of the .tel rollout which include:
- Sunrise, the phase open to trademark holders and owners at a sunrise application fee price of 386.- US (290.- Euro) and runs from December 3, 2008 to February 3, 2009. The premium price includes a three-year registration of the .tel name. .TEL Sunrise application should be submitted now as first come first served applies at the registrars.
- Landrush, open registration runs from Feb. 3 to March 24, 2009 at a cost of 115.-€/per year with an imposed minimum three-year registration of the name. You can register any name, even if it's not your own or your own company's name. Some registrar called it “Premium Landrush” as it is expected that all premium generic domain names will be registered during this period. .TEL “Premium Landrush” applications should be submitted now as first come first served applies.
- General, open registration starts March 24 and costs $18.-€ which includes a one-year registration of the name. The cheapest option but by the time March 24 rolls around the name you want
- particularly if it is a company name or a fairly common individual's name - may be long gone. Some registrar called it “GO-Live”; applications should be submitted now as first come first served applies at registrars also for the first day of the “Go-Live”
Does this mean an end to the traditional phone book?
"A dot tel domain will complement traditional phone books and the market will decide what happens to them as the world becomes increasingly more connected," said Xavier Buck, CEO of EuroDNS.
Source: DomainNews.com on October 21st, 2008 - Posted by Roland G. Buck - Chief Editor