ccTLDs.com » Country Code Specific Forums » .jp Forum

[Edwin]

Just a little bit of background for those who aren't familiar with the .jp cctld.

Once upon a time, there was only .co.jp available as the main cctld for companies in Japan. Emphasis on companies, as you had to show your company registration documents to obtain a .co.jp and organisations were limited to one domain each. At the beginning, that applied even to companies as large as Sony, Toyota etc. The extension was slightly loosened, but remains relatively tightly restricted today.

Later, .jp was introduced as a much more liberal extension. Basically, apart from some reserved words (major geos of cities and prefectures, government offices etc.) anyone could register anything in .jp, and that's still the case today. There are no restrictions on the number of .jp domains that one entity can own, and you don't have to be in Japan to do so, though you do have to have a local contact as the Admin address.

.jp domains are pretty expensive if you're only able to operate in English, as that's a very niche market and there are only a few firms serving it. In Japanese, the prices come right down as hundreds of companies are competing in the space.

It is possible to register .jp domains in IDN (i.e. in Japanese) as well as in ASCII characters.

For English-language .jp registrations, your best bet is probably http://www.jp-domains.com/ as they have an English language interface and also can help with the local address for the admin contact.

On the drop front, there used to be a (relatively private) English language drop-catcher, but they seem to have left the business and now there are only Japanese firms competing in the drop space. As far as I am aware, none publish "drop lists" so you'd have to compile your own if that's something you're interested in.

[Edwin]

It's worth looking at the sales side of the picture too.

Sedo is probably your best bet for selling .jp domains to end-users in Japan. For one thing, they have an interface localised into Japanese that is served automatically to Japanese IPs. They also have a dedicated Japanese language-speaking member of staff on hand to deal with the end-user firms and take care of the transfer/payment aspects of the deal.

The problem you'll have if you try and go direct is that most firms will be put off by the prospect of dealing with a counterparty using English, and (most likely) based outside Japan. Not to mention the difficulty in arranging payment.

BTW, don't be surprised if Japanese buyers are even less willing to publicise purchasers than companies in other major cctld markets. They are usually extremely reserved. Bear that in mind before you talk about any specifics of your sales in public, since it may come back to bite you later if the same company (or a different potential buyer) does a bit of research and stumbles upon it.

[DomainInvesting]

Thanks for all this info! Well written and informative.

[NeazMH]

Nice share. Thank you.

[Alfredo]

Thank you, very useful.

I use jp-domains.com too. It's a good registrar.

[JP-cooking]

There are huge opportunities in this market. Japanese language based content on the internet is something like the 3 or 4th in the world. But as for domains, there is a relatively small number being used in Japan (only probably between 2 and 3 million). For this reason, I see a very high concentration of traffic on dropping domains.

I have the drop list for .jp's and have excellent success, but nothing to my knowledge is being offered in English.

[Edwin]

Originally Posted by JP-cooking

I have the drop list for .jp's and have excellent success, but nothing to my knowledge is being offered in English.

Interesting. I had no idea there's a .jp drop list...

[alpha]

Originally Posted by Edwin

Interesting. I had no idea there's a .jp drop list...

Edwin you are correct. I have been drop catching in IDN .jp space for over 2 years and to date have a high 90's % catch rate

There is no zone file, there are automated methods to compile your own lists, some more devious than others, but still there is no drop list. Some registrars are happy to pass you their expiring lists at their registry, but there is no single drop list (zone file)

[JP-cooking]

I'll phrase my comment more accurately. I have "a" drop list, not "the" drop list.

Considering that there are:
1. only about 4 to 6 thousands .jp domains (2nd level) added to the zone each month
2. my drop lists include several thousand domains per month

I feel that I have one of the better lists of dropping names.

I would love to see some additional collaboration on this front, as JPRS refuses to release the actual full zone.

Maybe we should open a forum on how to build this zone?

Edwin, thanks for all your comments and incite on the Japanese market.

[jasdon]

Edwin, thanks for the info.

I've had a few englishkeyword .jp names which got a trickle of traffic but not enough to warrant renewing (I see that they were picked up by others though) - my question is, is there only real interest in IDN .jp names, either from a traffic or sales point of view?

Also, I know how difficult it is to sell into Japan from when I worked as a seafood trader - the most difficult market to crack!

[westend]

Many thanks (should I say 'arrigato gosaimasu'?) for the jp-domain.com reference. Sure beats GoDaddy prices by a bunch.

[snicksnack]

Thnaks you all of the information about .jp market. I would be interested to know which is the cheapest registrar for .jp domains (japanese interface would be okay).

[alpha]

Originally Posted by snicksnack

Thnaks you all of the information about .jp market. I would be interested to know which is the cheapest registrar for .jp domains (japanese interface would be okay).

jp-domains.com is the cheapest English interface and they also provide the much needed local presence address for non-residents

cheaper than jp-domains, these 2 have Japanese interfaces but don't provide the local presence:

value-domain.com
21-domain.com

for a bigger list, see here

[JP-cooking]

that is http://21-domain.com/

not the 21domains.com porn site posted above

[snicksnack]

Originally Posted by alpha

jp-domains.com is the cheapest English interface and they also provide the much needed local presence address for non-residents

cheaper than jp-domains, these 2 have Japanese interfaces but don't provide the local presence:

value-domain.com
21-domain.com

for a bigger list, see here

thanks for the info.

[JP-cooking]

I uploaded about 2000 .jp names (in the .jp drop catch forum) which will expire tomorrow, including alexa, yahoo, google, etc. into the .jp drop catching forum. Check it out if you have any interest. Though might be an interesting discussion piece for the community.

[NeazMH]

You may have a look into japanregistry.com for registering .jp domains.

[Brands-and-Jingles]

Would a Japanese company be rather interested in .jp or .com?

What is the best estimate of price for 1jp1.com?

Cheers!

[alpha]

following up on Edwin's great intro to .jp; if anyone is interested in reading more about .jp (both English and Japanese); take a look at this: Japan Deep-dive | IDN demystified - it is rather lengthy, so bring your long attention span and a comfy chair.

[Edwin]

Originally Posted by alpha

following up on Edwin's great intro to .jp; if anyone is interested in reading more about .jp (both English and Japanese); take a look at this: Japan Deep-dive | IDN demystified - it is rather lengthy, so bring your long attention span and a comfy chair.

I'll second that (all of it, the fact that it's a good read, and also the fact that's it's VERY long!) Anyway, brew up a cup of your favourite, and get reading!

[Gustavo Volcan]

Thanks for let us know!

[Alfredo]

Very interesting. Thanks