Joker to reduce prices (!) & other changes

[Tatu]

I received an e-mail from Joker stating their new pricing policy effective 1/16/1900. ;)[nbsp][nbsp]

From what I understand, the change will reduce prices around a dollar or two to $18 USD per year. Upon payment, you can choose a variable of length of time between payments (from 1 year to a decade). Pretty spiffy.

The e-mail's attached:
Dear Joker Customer,
as announced last month, effective[nbsp][nbsp]Jan 16. 2000 00:00 CET
the price for domains will drop from DEM 70 to DEM 60 for the 2 years period. (without VAT) At the same time it will be possible to register for a variable length of time, in intervals of 1 year from 1 to 10 years. If you then register for 1 year the fee will be DEM 35 which at the current xchange rate is ~ 18 USD. We want to thank you all for your cooperation and wish us all peaceful christmas and a successful new 2000 !
-JOKER-TEAM


-Tatu
[This message has been edited by Tatu (edited 12-15-99)]

[Charles Capps]

I LIKE these guys...

[Dan Kaplan]

I must say, it sounds too good to be true...

I'll probably go ahead and try out a domain registration with them, but if it were an important domain I'd be turned off for two reasons:

1) Quite likely the most unprofessional looking site I've ever seen![nbsp][nbsp]Can you say fly-by-night operation?

2) Their CORE whois lookup seems inconsistent with corenic.org's.[nbsp][nbsp]Shouldn't they both be pulling from the same database?

Despite their well documented ineptitude and arrogance, their's something to be said for the consistency of InterNIC.[nbsp][nbsp]You know they're not going anywhere (sigh) and they're as well established as anyone's likely to be.[nbsp][nbsp]The turtle and the hare...[nbsp][nbsp]Wow, I could be a lawyer with a spin like that!!!

Still, I'm intrigued by the upstarts.

Dan

[JoeRT]

Ok... so you could go to firstdomain.net, which took three days to do the last registration I saw someone do with them and pay $50.[nbsp][nbsp]Or, you could go to joker.com and pay $38 (which I did last week) and it was up and running in less than a day.[nbsp][nbsp]firstdomain's site looks slicker than joker's.[nbsp][nbsp]Can you always judge service by the package?[nbsp][nbsp]Joker isn't as good at making a website, but so far their service has been excellent.

[sheila]

I don't see how you can call Joker.com a fly-by-night or upstart corporation.

If you click on the link at the bottom of the joker.com page which says: "CSL GmbH Düsseldorf " and points to this URL:
http://www.nrw.net/

You can then click on the image map, and follow the link
"Wir ueber uns" which points to this URL:
http://www.nrw.net/homepage.htm

And you will see that their company has been in business since 1972.

What is not professional about their website? The fact that they haven't spent $$$ on webdesign services?

I've got one domain through Joker and planning on registering another.

[Dan Kaplan]

I didn't say they're unprofessional, I said they look unprofessional.[nbsp][nbsp]I also said I plan on trying them out.[nbsp][nbsp]My point was that first impressions should be very important to any business, and in my opinion, Joker.com fails miserably.

Besides, $20-$30 over two years isn't so much, unless you're multiplying it across many domains.

I don't doubt that Joker has been around for some time, my reference was to them being new as a registrar.[nbsp][nbsp]Is the average person going to know what "CSL GmbH" signifies and pursue that?[nbsp][nbsp]Sounds like something from chemistry.

As far as spending big bucks on site design, I have a hard time with that one.[nbsp][nbsp]I'd be willing to bet that pretty much everyone in this forum could design a much slicker looking site in a leisurely afternoon.

Not trying to be rude, just pointing out what I see as short-comings.

Dan

[pridetech]

I have to agree with Dan on some of the things mentioned. Every time I visited Joker I was hesitant because of the looks (and also the name Joker). Finally I registered a domain using Joker and was really impressed. Now I regret the fact that I did not use them for some of my other domains (I registered 4 domains in the past 20 days)

I bet Joker is loosing customers because of the "looks".

Another related note: Be careful while using TotalNIC. I tried to register a domain using them and the browser timed out after the credit card info was given. This happened twice and now $70 has been locked out from my credit limit. I called the cc company and they said the amount is blocked but not billed and that it will stay blocked for 15 days. To be fair, TotalNIC signup page did mention this happening.

I will not be trying TotalNIC a third time!

Joker has a less appealing website but the functionality is far superior!

[sheila]

Dan's remarks are fair (not rude at all). I was just wondering what made you say these things.

I suppose part of it might be the cultural differences, or perhaps not. It's hard to say when you're dealing with people or companies from another culture/country.

[Dan Kaplan]

Hi Sheila,

I thought about the cultural difference aspect, but I think marketing is pretty universal among corporations.[nbsp][nbsp]Everything I have studied (econ/business major/minor... ugh!) would indicate that.

Being as web-oriented of a business as one could be, I would say that Joker must be familiar with the medium and the competition.[nbsp][nbsp]I just can't come up with a reason why they would portray themselves in that fashion.[nbsp][nbsp]Unless of course, they're taking the angle that we sometimes hear at work, "make it look nice, but not **too** nice." ;)[nbsp][nbsp] Don't want to have to justify where the money's being spent.

Question:[nbsp][nbsp]If a registrar goes out of business, what happens to the domains they have registered?[nbsp][nbsp]Is there some international agreement governing this?

Dan

[sheila]

If a registrar goes out of business...

Well, in the case of Joker, it is a member of COREnic, and their records are in the COREnic database, so I would assume the records stay there and you would have to re-register at some point with another registrar. When...?[nbsp][nbsp]Hmm. Would other COREnic members honor your registration until your expiry date?

But, as I recall, all companies who wanted to be a registrar had to put up substantial cash up front to even be considered. I would assume that this has something to do with ensuring that they have the financial resources to commit to the task?

Maybe there is more info available ont his topic at www.corenic.org (http://www.corenic.org) ?

[hearts]

Excellent points Dan. I must agree with all you have said because I have felt exactly the same way.

I have become so accustomed to using Network Solutions that I am not even willing to try something else. The saying "you get what you paid for" really sticks to my thoughts.

I have been paranoid with the same question, what happens if these people decide NOT to be registering domains any longer? Yet another reason I continue to use Network Solutions.

Network Solutions has been outstanding for me and I have nothing to complain about when it comes to their service. A month ago I had a nightmare of a transfer to do.. one we wish we never had to face, and Network Solutions came through in 3 days for us via FAX -- I was very impressed.

It is great that there is competition for these services, but this whole idea is fairly new and I am not certain it is stable or reliable.

We all gotta stick with what works for us. I wouldn't try to convince anyone one way or another. To me, the extra monies are worth paying for a service I know is dependable.


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hearts
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Heartistic Wishes[nbsp][nbsp][nbsp][nbsp][nbsp][nbsp][nbsp][nbsp]www.heartisticwishes.com (http://www.heartisticwishes.com)[nbsp][nbsp]

[Tatu]

...and to me paying less for a service I know is speedy and semi-dependable is worth it.

But that's just me, ;)
-Tatu

[pdstein]

I'm registered as a NetworkSolutions affiliate, so my registrations with NSI are streamlined and familiar to me and they pay a commission.[nbsp][nbsp]But, for the past week I have been unable to register any domain names through their affiliate system.[nbsp][nbsp]I called and they told me the person who supports their affiliate program wasn't there and I never received a call or email bach from him.[nbsp][nbsp]I emailed and today after 5 days I got a reply acknowledging that they are having some problems and thanking me for my patience.[nbsp][nbsp]That kind of horrible customer service is inexcusible.

I finally go so fed up, I finally tried joker.com.[nbsp][nbsp]I had no problems at all and in less than 24 hours both domain names I registered were up and running.

Like most of you, I really don't know what to think of Joker.com.[nbsp][nbsp]I was hesitant to try them due to the name and the look of their website.[nbsp][nbsp]You would think a company with the money to invest to become a CORE member could pick a better name and create a better website, but you can't argue with results.[nbsp][nbsp]I'm planning to stick with them - though, I'll probably shake my head everytime I register a domain name with them.

[Lupe]

Wow... can anyone say MCI??[nbsp][nbsp]Remember when AT&T was deregulated??[nbsp][nbsp]No one thought another company could be as RELIABLE even if the rates were less expesive.[nbsp][nbsp]

So in light of that example, there will be lots of folks not willing to register with folks like Joker... but, those people are still with AT&T too! hehehe
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[JoelM]

I had asked about the registrar transfer last week, as I've
got about 5 domains coming up for renewal in the next few
months.[nbsp][nbsp]Below is their response.

IMHO .. Joker has given me better service by far than Network Solutions ... Network Solutions does not even check the CORE registrars databases on a WHOIS.[nbsp][nbsp]Go to a CORE registrar, and they check everyone.[nbsp][nbsp]Network Solutions is just plain dragging their feet.

========================

Transfering domains from another registrar to JOKER/CSL/CORE is now possible. Use the appropiate templates you can find under joker.com.

Remark : if you start a transfer for a domains until Jan 15. 2000 , the domain will have to be renewed for 2 years, the cost would be

DEM 70 ( ~ USD 36 ) for that period (2 years).

BUT

if you start the transfer after Jan. 15 2000 you can choose the prolongation-time from 1 to a max. of 10 years and the fee for each year will be DEM 30 ( ~ USD 16 ).

(all prices without VAT)

JOKER-TEAM

==========================
You cant beat this!![nbsp][nbsp]Joel

[sheila]

Well, here's a new one. That $16 to register a domain for just a year starting on Jan. 15th...too good to be true. I wanted to check it out.

Typed:
www.joker.com (http://www.joker.com)
in my browser address window. It updated the link to something like
https://joker.com/index.html?lang=EN
and gave me a file not found error.

I tried retyping it several times. :(

[Dan Kaplan]

Sheila,

You're right, they've changed something.[nbsp][nbsp]It was updating to the English page (I assume that's what "lang=EN" signifies) for me before, but now I get the 404 error like you.[nbsp][nbsp]I won't even comment on what this does to my impression...[nbsp][nbsp]Too harsh?[nbsp][nbsp]Maybe.

Dan

[Tatu]

Friggins on a cob! It is still like that! :(

THAT has to be bad for business...
-Tatu

[sheila]

Oh, well I think it's hunky dory. Makes me want to register 10 domains with them. (I sent them an e-mail.)
If it makes anyone feel any better, I got the same type of problems on the Disney site this week. And Disney ain't no fly-by-night.

[hearts]

i don't use AT&T

:þ~~~~~~~~~~

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hearts
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Heartistic Wishes[nbsp][nbsp][nbsp][nbsp][nbsp][nbsp][nbsp][nbsp]www.heartisticwishes.com (http://www.heartisticwishes.com)[nbsp][nbsp]

[Dan Kaplan]

And Disney ain't no fly-by-night.
:)[nbsp][nbsp]Touche.

I know the big on-line retailers have been swamped beyond capacity (Disney might be included in that group), but are that many people buying domains for xmas? ;)

i don't use AT&T
I do, and nearly every time I've priced them against MCI they come out cheaper.[nbsp][nbsp]So... the only comparison I can see making there is in the short-term, and it's the long-term that holds the most concerns regarding the new registrars.

Dan

[sheila]

Hey, look, Dan. I'm just being a smartass. Don't mind me.

Must be that holiday spirit. ;)

[hearts]

*whew*

let this battle die already.

here is something y'all can agree on.

We have our domains hosted at FutureQuest.

;)[nbsp][nbsp]

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hearts
-----
Heartistic Wishes[nbsp][nbsp][nbsp][nbsp][nbsp][nbsp][nbsp][nbsp]www.heartisticwishes.com (http://www.heartisticwishes.com)[nbsp][nbsp]

[This message has been edited by hearts (edited 12-22-99@04:06 am)]

[sheila]

Battle? What battle? <confused>
Just thought we were messin' around. ???

[sheila]

By the way, Joker seems to be back up now.

So I took a look at their forms to let you administrate changes in your domain. I have to agree with Dan, that the pages are quite unprofessional. There is no excuse for the poorly translated English. There are many people in Germany who speak excellent English. They should be able to get someone to proof it for them.

I guess I'm just cheap. I don't recommend Joker, or anything like that.

[Tatu]

I don't think anyone is battling over here, just some interesting conversation (which AOTA has been lacking for a little while ;)[nbsp][nbsp]).

I agree with Justin on a few points. If I was just registering one domain, I would have not even considered Joker. But since I am/was contemplating 10+ (so far 6, but I will be getting 8+ more), I had to get busy scraping $. Joker saves me $330 per 10 domains registered. That is a butt load of money when you think about it ($370 for 10 at Joker / $700 for ten at Netsol or Register.com).

-Tatu

[Justin]

My opinions change way too often when it comes to the &quot;expensive but well known&quot; vs &quot;not so well known but cost less&quot; type of decisions - I preach &quot;you get what you pay for&quot; all the time, yet I often find myself getting snagged with it. I finally solved all my PC problems by picking up an IBM Aptiva w/Pentium III 450 - no AMD, no home brew system, mix 'n' match - though I did put the board in a bigger case with a bigger power supply (the Aptiva comes in such a small (not to mention ugly) case ;) ).

With domain names, I own more than enough - 2 is all I need but I was talked in to getting the com/net/org trio for hostfacts. But if I were to need another domain I would just pay the $70 to either NSI or Register.com. $70 is not a lot of money -- if you are buying a single domain. If you need a bunch of domains then I could understand wanting to save, but for just one domain, I say pay the $70.

First impressions are very important to most people (including myself). If you walked into a store accross the street from Sears that had lower prices, but was kinda dirty, with some isles closed off due to construction... Would you shop there, or would you go accross the street, pay the Sears prices (and get the Sears warranty/service), and know that in 10 years Sears will still be there...

Sometimes it is worth the extra cost. And my first impression *before* I go to joker.com is &quot;what kind of name is that? What does joker have to do with domains?&quot;. Network Solutions - professional sounding name, makes sense that a company called &quot;Network Solutions&quot; provided domain registration. Register.com - no explanation necessary. Joker - huh?

Then visiting the sites - ok, if it is a cost issue, they could have *at least* opened up Front Page Express and come up with something better than that... not that I am in any way justifying FP ;)

Had they either a) Had a more suitable name, or b) had a more professional looking web site, I would consider them. But this is two strikes against them in my book, not to mention the fact that Register.com has been parking domains forever, and they were one of the first (or *the* first?) other registrar on the scene - and of course Netsol has been doing this forever - I have never heard of joker.com before all of this.

I also agree that most people (myself included) would never have cared who the parent company is/was or how long they've been in business...

BTW - I use Sprint, but they are also my local phone company and they provide the ADSL, and unless I see a problem I'll stick with the default LD service (laziness ;) )

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Justin Nelson
FutureQuest Support