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Ask HN: Are Premium Domains a Scam? Getting charged $800/domain :(

3 points by MarcelOlsz 6y ago

I bought two "premium" domains standup.tech and saving.cash a year ago. They are due for renewal but are $800/pop. I found some random registrar called bluehost and they said if I transfer these to my account with Bluehost, they will only be $49.99/year to renew. Anyone know how I can get around this crazy fee? Is it set by Namecheap or the registry itself?

LinuxBender 6y ago
Are Premium Domains a Scam? In my opinion, yes. It also depends on what that means. Squatters / Botters pick up short domain names and then sit on them until someone buys them. Short common names can also go for a lot. This is due to the ease of use on radio and television marketing. If I say "cars.com" it is hard to get that wrong. This is entirely up to the registrar or owner that holds the domain. Registrars pay very tiny registration fees to ICANN for a domain regardless of what TLD or apex name it uses.
- MarcelOlsz 6y ago
  Doesn't really help me no offense. Trying to find out how/who to transfer these domains too and if it's possible to avoid paying $800/year to name cheap. Do you know any providers or if this is possible, concretely? I cannot find any information one way or the other.
  - LinuxBender 6y ago
    I think the best you could do would be to get Namecheap on the phone and ask them what they can do. This is not a regulatory issue, but rather a business negotiation. The registrar will accept whatever they can get out of someone for a domain. You could try talking to a few registrars and see if they can help you out. Provided you have the unlock code, it's up to the registrar to accept the transfer and agree to accept a payment for the domain. I don't really have a better answer. Perhaps someone else here does.
    - MarcelOlsz 6y ago
      After some more digging it looks like prices are set up by some "registry" that the registrar has no control over, so it'll be the same price everywhere. I don't think what you wrote is correct.
      - LinuxBender 6y ago
        What is this registry?
        MarcelOlsz 6y ago
        I think ICANN?
        LinuxBender 6y ago
        That is unlikely. ICANN has set fees per TLD that are very low. The registrars are the companies that jack up the prices. You should make them provide you a source for who is setting this price. I think they are pulling your leg.
        detaro 6y ago
        If a registry wants high prices for it's "premium domains" (whatever it defines as such) on one of its TLDs, the registrar can't magically charge you less unless they are willing to make a loss on you. ICANN doesn't really restrict the pricing the registry chooses for this class of TLDs (afaik the contracts for older ones like .com/.org/.net have such limits, but not the new gTLDs, there the registry can do pretty much whatever if wants).
        detaro 6y ago
        The owner of the top-level domain. With the new gTLDs that got sold they are quite free in coming up with their own pricing models.
aritmo 6y ago
You should have avoided Namecheap and their "premium" domains. The "premium" is a made-up term in order to milk customers of their lovely $$$. They put ad hoc restrictions on selected domains, and these may include unreasonable fees for things like renewals or even transfers to other registrars. If you bought the domain from another registrar, you would have paid retail price. Read the comments at https://www.namecheap.com/support/knowledgebase/article.aspx/9990/35/how-to-get-a-premium-domain/ https://www.namecheap.com/support/knowledgebase/article.aspx...
- MarcelOlsz 6y ago
  Namecheap said "The domains are marked as premium on Registry level (this is not done by a Registrar company such as Namecheap). The price is also established by the Registry and may vary only slightly depending on the Registrar you choose." so it looks like its not up to them?
akor 6y ago
I also own a "premium" domain and IMHO what Namecheap said is correct. I originally purchased on Namecheap but then moved to NameSilo because it was $15-20 cheaper (approx $60 otherwise). For example NameSilo lists standup.tech as $640.
- MarcelOlsz 6y ago
  So these "premium domains" always renew at $640? No way am I using this name then. Going to have to let both of these go.

3 points by MarcelOlsz 6y ago

LinuxBender 6y ago

Are Premium Domains a Scam? In my opinion, yes. It also depends on what that means. Squatters / Botters pick up short domain names and then sit on them until someone buys them. Short common names can also go for a lot. This is due to the ease of use on radio and television marketing. If I say "cars.com" it is hard to get that wrong. This is entirely up to the registrar or owner that holds the domain. Registrars pay very tiny registration fees to ICANN for a domain regardless of what TLD or apex name it uses.

MarcelOlsz 6y ago
Doesn't really help me no offense. Trying to find out how/who to transfer these domains too and if it's possible to avoid paying $800/year to name cheap. Do you know any providers or if this is possible, concretely? I cannot find any information one way or the other.
- LinuxBender 6y ago
  I think the best you could do would be to get Namecheap on the phone and ask them what they can do. This is not a regulatory issue, but rather a business negotiation. The registrar will accept whatever they can get out of someone for a domain. You could try talking to a few registrars and see if they can help you out. Provided you have the unlock code, it's up to the registrar to accept the transfer and agree to accept a payment for the domain. I don't really have a better answer. Perhaps someone else here does.
  - MarcelOlsz 6y ago
    After some more digging it looks like prices are set up by some "registry" that the registrar has no control over, so it'll be the same price everywhere. I don't think what you wrote is correct.
    - LinuxBender 6y ago
      What is this registry?
      - MarcelOlsz 6y ago
        I think ICANN?
        LinuxBender 6y ago
        That is unlikely. ICANN has set fees per TLD that are very low. The registrars are the companies that jack up the prices. You should make them provide you a source for who is setting this price. I think they are pulling your leg.
        detaro 6y ago
        If a registry wants high prices for it's "premium domains" (whatever it defines as such) on one of its TLDs, the registrar can't magically charge you less unless they are willing to make a loss on you. ICANN doesn't really restrict the pricing the registry chooses for this class of TLDs (afaik the contracts for older ones like .com/.org/.net have such limits, but not the new gTLDs, there the registry can do pretty much whatever if wants).
      - detaro 6y ago
        The owner of the top-level domain. With the new gTLDs that got sold they are quite free in coming up with their own pricing models.

aritmo 6y ago

You should have avoided Namecheap and their "premium" domains. The "premium" is a made-up term in order to milk customers of their lovely $$$. They put ad hoc restrictions on selected domains, and these may include unreasonable fees for things like renewals or even transfers to other registrars. If you bought the domain from another registrar, you would have paid retail price. Read the comments at https://www.namecheap.com/support/knowledgebase/article.aspx/9990/35/how-to-get-a-premium-domain/ https://www.namecheap.com/support/knowledgebase/article.aspx...

MarcelOlsz 6y ago
Namecheap said "The domains are marked as premium on Registry level (this is not done by a Registrar company such as Namecheap). The price is also established by the Registry and may vary only slightly depending on the Registrar you choose." so it looks like its not up to them?

akor 6y ago

I also own a "premium" domain and IMHO what Namecheap said is correct. I originally purchased on Namecheap but then moved to NameSilo because it was $15-20 cheaper (approx $60 otherwise). For example NameSilo lists standup.tech as $640.

MarcelOlsz 6y ago
So these "premium domains" always renew at $640? No way am I using this name then. Going to have to let both of these go.