.mobi Sites are Increasing in India and Represent a Good Business Opportunity

9 May 2007 - 16:43

Making Money from the .mobi Extension

Entrepreneurs in India are apparently taking an increasing interest in the new .mobi extension, the extension for accessing websites via mobile phones and, given the rapid increase in the number of mobile phones in use in India, this extension is likely to continue to grow in popularity. .mobi sites are specifically designed to make viewing easier on a mobile phone and do not take up as much space as a normal .com or .co .in site.

According to the corporate blog run by dotMobi CEO Neil Edwards’, 95,000 .mobi names were bought within the first 48 hours of registrations becoming available last May. Recently total registrations worldwide went over the 500,00 mark. The momentum in India is mainly the result of young adults.
Most .mobi sites at the moment are text-based as they are easier to access over mobile phone networks, but this is likely to change as the technology improves.

The .mobi extension also represents an interesting possibility to make money, with little initial investment and not a great deal of effort. You need to register a .mobi name (that has not already been registered), this costs around US$10, this then be developed into a site or if you don't fancy doing this you can put it up for sale at a domain name auction. Since the beginning of 2007 there have been a number of high profile .mobi sales, including Sportsbook.mobi for US$129,800, RealEstate.mobi for US$85,000, Stocks.mobi for US$70,000 and Casinos.mobi for US$53,000. Generic names are the best and make sure you avoid possible trademark disputes, but apart from that if it hasn't been registered you can register it yourself.

To register a name you would need to contact a domain registrar such as Moniker.com or MumbaiHosting.com. Once the name is registered you would need to find a 'parking company' (free) or an auction site (free but they will take a commission on any sale).

For futher information about .mobi names and auctions check out : NetMonetization

Good luck and have a nice day !