Google Is Quietly Getting Into Domains With Invite-Only Feature
Google quietly announced that it had begun testing a new service, Google Domains, that will let people register for domains.
By Sadho Ram — 25 Jun 2014, 02:37 PM — Updated over 10 years ago
It looks like Google is getting into the domain registrar business; the search giant has a "beta" site available at domains.google.com
Google has quietly launched its own internet domain registration service. And like many Google projects, Google Domains is starting off in beta; you'll need an invite to get in and purchase your own URL.
theverge.com
But the company's latest effort could present GoDaddy — the world's leading domain registrar — with some fresh competition.
mashable.com
Although, the service is invite-only for now, it looks like it will provide a bevy of features typically found on registrars such as GoDaddy, Namecheap and Hover
With Google Domains, you can set up a custom domain of your choosing, but Google won't actually be hosting your website. It's only handling the domain registration aspect; for everything else, the company has partnered with Squarespace, Wix, Weebly, and Shopify — businesses that specialize in helping consumers build complete websites in mere minutes.
theverge.com
But Google seems to think it can do the domain registration part better than the competition. First, it's promising not to charge users anything extra to conceal personal information (e.g. name and address) that must be provided when registering a URL.
Google Domains users can create up to 100 email aliases using their domain, and Mountain View also says it's making domain forwarding super easy in case there's already a Tumblr or existing site you'd like your new URL to point to. And you shouldn't run into any problems or downtime (at least on Google's end). Google Domains use the same DNS servers as Google's other websites, ensuring "your domain will connect quickly and reliably to your website."
slate.comLastly, there's the benefit of real customer support. Google says phone and email support will be available Monday through Friday from 9AM to 9PM EST
Google Domains will help you set up a new URL, but it's also accepting domain transfers from other registrars if you're lucky enough to get an invite. The first invites are going out to select businesses now, and there's no target date for when the service will go public.
mashable.com
Google is only saying, "Our goal is to make Google Domains more widely available soon." For now, it wants all the feedback it can get from early users.
theverge.com
The push into domain registration is being framed by Google as part of a larger effort to help small businesses beef up their online operations and navigate the Web
Two weeks ago, the company launched Google My Business, a collection of free resources geared to small-business owners. PayPal also rolled out a similar toolkit for small-business owners, PassPort, earlier this month.
slate.comGoogle's domain rates are roughly comparable with those of other major registrars, such as GoDaddy and Namecheap. That said, features like private registration and domain-specific email that are built into Google Domains can quickly add up in surcharges on other sites; privacy protection starts at $7.99 for a .com domain on GoDaddy and email at $3.99 per month.
Google is probably also banking on its brand recognition and reliability to give it an edge on GoDaddy—a champion of sleaze and gross advertising—which filed for an IPO in early June.
slate.comMike McLaughlin, a senior vice president at GoDaddy, told TheStreet that Google remains a "valuable partner of ours." But suffice it to say that the company might feel differently about Google's foray into domains when its offering finally hits the market.
mashable.com
Google Domains isn't Google's first foray into the domain space
Longtime users may remember that Google previously offered the ability to purchase a domain through eNom or GoDaddy. But this time, it appears Google will actually be the registrar.
mashable.com