Domain Pricing Changes
At the end of 2015 Nominet, the official registry for all UK domains, announced that it would be increasing domain pricing to all UK registrars.
These changes are taking place on Tuesday, 1 March, and will put Nominet prices on par with international registries and their domain prices.
Why are prices changing?
Russell Haworth, CEO of Nominet, said in a statement:
Nominet’s board decided that a price increase was unavoidable due to increased costs and more intense competition between the new extensions in todays domain market. Russell Haworth, Nominet CEO commented:
“We’re committed to running a first class service for .UK registrants, including our renowned customer service, and we’re doing more than ever before to ensure the .UK space is a safe and trusted home for all. But costs have risen considerably since we last changed the price, and we need to compete in a promotion-driven industry. We won’t compromise on the quality of our service or dial back our efforts to counter cyber-threats head on. However, it’s important to us that .UK domains represent value for money as well as quality, and the price we have set reflects that.”
What does this mean for UKC customers?
Because Nominet are raising their prices, we have to raise our prices. From 1 March, the annual prices will be (excluding VAT):
.UK, .CO.UK, .ME.UK, and .ORG.UK domains – £5.99 (£4.99 for Domain Resellers)
Along with these Nominet changes, we are also increasing the price of .COM, .NET and .ORG domain names to £9.99 per year. The Domain Reseller price will be £8.49.
We are committed to providing great value domain pricing
With our new annual price of £5.99, we continue to be cheaper than many other leading UK domain registries, with 123-Reg, GoDaddy 1&1 and NamesCo all having announced increases to £6.99 per year, and UK2 to £6.49.
What steps can you take to prepare for this price increase?
A price increase is never enjoyable. However, we have a few steps you can take to mitigate the frustration you may be feeling.
Buy up those domains
If you were considering purchasing a domain, now is the time to do it. You can hold a domain for as many years as you need, and now that you’ve saved on the price well before you needed to use it. If you have a new website in mind, an app to develop, or just have a passing fancy, this is the time to buy.
Renew your domains now
By renewing before March 1st, you’ll renew at the current rate and be able to take advantage of the multi-year discount. You can renew your domains for up to 10 years in advance, locking in the current price and avoiding any future price changes.