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who are saying the iPhone is
a .mobi killer were right. My first impression was
that this device could indeed spell big trouble for an
extension devoted to bare bones sites.
With the Safari browser you
can go anywhere on the web, zoom in on any part of a
page and move around to read whatever you want. However,
after spending about a half hour browsing with it at home
today, I'm not so sure. It did get a little tedious
zooming in, out and around full scale sites after awhile.
By the time I went to MLB.com (major league
baseball's site) it was refreshing when it
automatically loaded a mobile optimized site that
fit the screen perfectly with all of the relevant
information I needed and no further need to pan or scroll
around the screen. |
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Of course, a
site doesn't need a .mobi domain to do this (MLB.com,
for example, doesn't use one) but it had me rethinking my
initial reaction that the iPhone is the death knell for .mobi.
Even on an advanced device like the iPhone, having sites
branded as "made for mobile" (as .mobi is),
could be a plus. I'll have a more informed opinion after
using it for several days. The navigation around big sites
will likely feel less tedious as I get used to the
iPhone's touch screen finger control method, but at the
moment, I'm thinking that rumors of .mobi's death at the
hands of the iPhone may be premature.
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That's not to say .mobi
doesn't have other hurdles to clear, just that the
iPhone alone may not be the grim reaper. While its
effect on .mobi could end up being neutral,
the iPhone certainly reinforces the supremacy of .com
by putting only a .com button on its keyboard
to help people quickly complete entry of web
addresses. If you want to use any other extension,
you have to type it out. |
Next item:
For those interested in joining other domainers from
around the globe for a great time in Australia this
fall, the agenda
has been posted for the T.R.A.F.F.I.C. Down Under
conference coming to the Gold Coast November
18-20. Fabulous.com,
who is based in Brisbane, Australia will be hosting
the event and having been round the Fab crew for years
now, I can assure you they will make sure everyone has a
great time and learns a few new things about the
business while they're at it.
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Before closing out
another week I also want to mention a very worthy
charity auction project that SmashFactory.com
is helping produce. They've teamed with auction site
Bidjit.com and Escrow.com to put together
a Bids
for Kids domain auction that will raise
money for St. Jude Children's Hospital.
Anyone can submit
names to the auction which will charge a
15% sales commission with 10% of that fee going to
St. Jude. Names will be accepted from now until September
15, with the final catalog to be posted online September
22. The three-day auction will then run October
1-3 on Bidjit.com.
Check it out, it looks like a win win
situation for everyone involved. |
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(Posted
August
22,
2008) |
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