Tuvalu, a tiny island nation with the .tv TLD, has been cashing in on domain sales to Twitch and others, representing ~8% of the island’s gross national income (Alexander Lee/Washington Post)
When the Tuvaluan government announced it would sell the top-level domain (.tv) to companies in 2015, it sold the domain to Twitch for an estimated $10.5 million. Twitch is a video streaming site. But, there was one catch: the buyer had to commit to maintaining the domain for ten years. The TLD wasn’t cheap, either; the domain cost $70,000 annually. The sale was so lucrative for the government that the government’s reserves funded the entire purchase price. The government made more than $4 million from the sale alone. Tuvalu is a very small country in the Pacific Ocean, and it doesn’t have much to offer to anyone outside of its small population. But the Internet is different. It offers a virtual world where almost any dream can become a reality, especially about making money online. Because of that, Tuvalu is now cashing in on domain name sales with the.tv TLD allows people to use the domains to build new websites, sell advertising, and host email addresses.
What is Tuvalu?
Tuvalu has just 5,000 residents, but that number is growing rapidly. With an economy based mostly on tourism, Tuvalu’s future is looking up. But there’s a problem: the country has only one landline phone, which is rarely in service. The government must rely on expensive satellite internet to keep its economy running. They want to bring the entire country onto the Internet to attract more tourists and businesses. Tuvalu, a tiny island nation with the .tv TLD, has been cashing in on domain sales to Twitch and others, representing ~8% of the island’s gross national income.
How Tuvalu has been cashing in on domain sales to Twitch and others?
This little country of just over 11,000 people in the South Pacific Ocean earned nearly $2 million in revenue in 2014 alone. The government of Tuvalu has no official website, but its representatives have been selling TLDs since 1999 to make ends meet. The island nation is located between Australia and Hawaii. Tuvalu is a tiny island nation with the.tv TLD has been cashing in on domain sales to Twitch and others and has just released a new website to showcase its offerings. While not necessarily a great example of a successful website, it is a very interesting glimpse into how a small country can turn its domain name into a revenue stream. The website showcases some of the best domains available for sale. The best part? Some of the domains are already being used for real websites.
How Tuvalu, a tiny island nation with the .tv TLD representing ~8% of the island’s gross national income?
Tuvalu, a tiny island nation with the .tv TLD, has been cashing in on domain sales to Twitch and others, representing ~8% of the island’s gross national income. The story is a fascinating one, as the country of Tuvalu is not only small but also poor. Tuvalu doesn’t have its land mass, instead consisting of 14 smaller islands, and as a result, Tuvalu is one of the poorest countries in the world. The majority of its citizens live below the poverty line and rely solely on government assistance. But Tuvalu is also home to the. tv domain name, making up the bulk of the country’s annual revenue. In 2015 alone, over $17 million in domain names were sold for the.tv TLD, according to Domain Report. The highest-grossing country-specific domain name is www.jimmykimmel.tv
Conclusion
Tuvalu, a tiny island nation with the .tv TLD, has been cashing in on domain sales to Twitch and others, representing ~8% of the island’s gross national income. Tuvalu has recently sold the country’s top-level domains (.tv,.mobi,.info,.org) to the highest bidder for $4.8 million. The country had previously auctioned off its second-level domain,.yt, for $2 million. The. Tv’s top-level domain was sold to an Australian telecom company, and the other three were sold to the US-based New Zealand e-commerce firm BigCommerce. Tuvalu is located 1,200 miles south of Hawaii, making it the most isolated country in the world. Tuvalu is also the only Pacific Island nation to achieve independence from its colonial power, Britain, in 1978.
FAQs
1. What is Tuvalu?
Tuvalu is a group of eight Pacific Ocean islands located about 1,300 miles (2,100 km) west of Hawaii.
2. Why does Tuvalu have a.tv domain?
The government of Tuvalu is planning to sell the country’s.tv domain to the highest bidder.
3. How much will it cost?
The auction is set to start on June 1st, and the winning bidder will be announced on June 14th.
4. How can I find out more?
You can find out more at the. Tv website.
