[jbob2000]

No, I think they are needed. The .com namespace is crowded, it's really hard to find a nice, short domain name, as pretty much everything under 6 characters has been bought up.

If we can get older blogs and new blogs onto the .blog namespace, then this will free up .com for what it was intended for; companies.

[nikolay]

Oh, so consumers make a difference between name.co, name.com, name.website, name.online, name.click, name.link? Gimme a break! This is a legalized scam and ICANN is a mafia!

[jbob2000]

It's a non-profit organization, hardly the kind of organization I would call a mafia. And yes, consumers can tell the difference between the different domain names. We already have hundreds for different countries, like .ca, .us, .uk, etc.

You're really looking for a problem where there is none.

[nikolay]

As an organization - it's a non-profit one, true, but it is its bribable members who make it a mafia. I've been in the domain business since 2000 and I know a thing or two. ICANN is a mafia, period! And nobody in the domain business has any doubt about it!

[jbob2000]

What's your solution? Because you just sound like a tin-foil hat conspiracist at this point. There has to be an organization that manages domain names, how else would they be managed?

[fallenshell]

This sounds more like a troll than a tin-foil hat conspiracist. Ignore it.

[nikolay]

You're a troll - a newly created account with virtually no karma! I own thousands of domain names, and I have dealt with hundreds of domain registrars over the course of 20 years. When I say ICANN is a mafia, I know it first hand! I've reported a bunch of fraudulent registrars that stole some of my domains, and they didn't care due to that being a "customer support" issue and ignore all evidence I provided.