What Happens When Domain Registrars Merge?

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The recent acquisition of BulkRegister by eNom created headaches for some BulkRegister customers. Are more acquisitions on the horizon?

Many years ago I used an online bank called CompuBank. It was a great internet-only bank that offered free free checking and billpay. When I sent deposits in by mail they posted the next day. It was great. But then a larger bank called NetBank acquired CompuBank. NetBank was horrible and botched the integration with CompuBank. My money was locked up without access for weeks and NetBank’s fees were higher. I pulled my money out as soon as I could, but the transition was a pain.

As registrar consolidation picks up steam you might experience similar pains. You probably have a couple registrars you prefer to use. You’re comfortable with their user interfaces, policies, and prices. What would happen if tomorrow your registrar was swallowed by a registrar you disliked?

A number of BulkRegister customers were frustrated by the recent acquisition by eNom. For the record, I’m a fan of eNom and I like how it operates. But not everyone thinks so. And it is certainly different from BulkRegister. For example, one BulkRegister customer wrote to Domain Name Wire complaining about a renewal for one of her domains. When domains came up for renewal at BulkRegister the company would automatically charge her credit card. eNom, on the other hand, uses a pay-in-advance model. You fund your account with a deposit which is then debited whenever you make a purchase. Although this works for some people, it was frustrating to this customer who was used to paying for each purchase.

There will be more registrar consolidation in the future. Moniker was purchased by an online media company in August, although it isn’t merging with another registrar so customers will not be affected. But as merger and acquisitions in this space heat up you can expect a few headaches.