Domain Name Q&A: New gTLD Edition (EAP and GA pricing and renewals)

It has been a long time since I did a Domain Name Q&A post for the simple reason that I don’t have time for it. There is constantly something to write about and many times some stories don’t ever get reported because something better comes up.

I got an email from a reader and I thought I could reply to him helping a few others that might be confused about New gTLD EAP and premium domain name pricing.

Here are the 3 questions from the reader:

Q1) If I purchase a Donuts related premium domain name on day 4 or day 5 of EAP for $370 and the GA price is $250, will I pay $370 for renewal or $250 for renewal?

A1) You will pay

$250 for the renewal. But If EAP day 5 price is $370 then the day before would be something like $850. There is a difference is pricing between day 4 and 5. Days 5, 6 and 7 have the same pricing.

Q2) If I purchase a Donuts related standard domain name on day 4 or day 5 of EAP for $370 and the GA price is $45, will I pay $370 for renewal or $45 for renewal? (This question is the same as question number 1, except that it relates to a non-premium/standard domain name with a non-premium GA price.)

A2) You will pay $45. You will always pay for renewals the GA price no matter what the EAP price is, premium or non-premium.

Q3) If I pre-register a premium domain name after day 5 of the EAP and before GA for $370, will I pay $370 renewal or will the renewal price be equivalent to the GA price of $250?

A3) There is no difference is pricing (according to Donuts) between days 5, 6 and 7. I have only seen one registrar that had different prices for these 3 days. And their day 5 was the most expensive from all other registrars. Day 7 was on par with days 5-6-7 from other registrars. Again you will pay $250 for the renewal.

And here are a couple of questions I think that people would like answered.

Q4) If I buy a New gTLD at Go Daddy that has a $400 renewal will I be able to transfer the domain name to a different cheaper registrar?

A4) Yes, after the first 60 days that the domain name is locked you can transfer the domain to any other registrar that carries the New gTLD string you have. You will not be paying the $400 renewal at the new registrar but rather their own price. That could be $600 or even $230. I have seen a lot of $400 Go Daddy domains being sold for $230 at other registrars. No, Go Daddy is not the cheapest registrar!

Q5) Do all New gTLDs strings have some domains with premium renewals?

A5) No, up until now only Donuts New gTLD strings have variable pricing and premium renewals. New gTLDs such as .Sexy, .blue, .club, .berlin and .photo have fixed pricing. It just happens that Donuts is offering A LOT of New gTLDs. But be careful. Fixed pricing doesn’t always means cheap. .Rich domains are being sold at about $2,500 per year. Fixed price…