The IDN Tax: Paying Double Reg Fee

What do you make of VeriSign’s plans for IDN.com to be unlocked as IDN.com-in-IDN? Fantastic news for natives who will get more IDN.IDN developed sites, and for IDN investors whose digital property will increase in value, right?

Though this news seems to unquestionably be “good news”, some domainers have focused on a downside that was also mentioned. For each .com-in-IDN an activation fee might be required.

Some took this opportunity to tease IDNers about this potential “IDN tax” and the possibility of paying double reg fee to reach natives. The retort of course is that such taunts fail to understand that many IDN portfolios consist of names that are well worth double reg-fee, especially if IDN.IDN is activated.

From a policy perspective, an increase in reg fee is never a good thing as it stifles the development of the Internet at the hands of creative, bootstrapped entrepreneurs.

In this case though, if double reg fee is what it takes to get IDN.IDN activation done, it is still well worth it.

Note: Whether unlocking IDN.com-in-IDN occurs, whether an IDN.IDN activation fee is implemented, and whether activation fee is double-reg fee or any other number has not yet been definitively determined.