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'''NamesCon''', or the '''Domain Name Industry Conference''', is a conference that brings together companies, representatives, and individuals in the [[Domain Name]] industry, especially [[Registries]] and [[Registrar]]s. The first conference was held January 13-15, 2014 in Las Vegas.<ref>[http://namescon.com/ NamesCon.com] Retrieved 11 Nov 2013</ref> The second conference was held in the same location in January 2015. The 2016 NamesCon will be held in the same venue, and will take place on January 10-14, 2016.

'''NamesCon''', or the '''Domain Name Industry Conference''', is an annual event that brings together companies, representatives, and individuals in the [[Domain Name]] industry, especially [[Registries]] and [[Registrar]]s. The first conference was held January 13-15, 2014 in Las Vegas at the Tropicana Hotel and Convention Centre.<ref>[http://namescon.com/ NamesCon.com] Retrieved 11 Nov 2013</ref> The second conference was held in the same location in January 2015. The 2016 NamesCon will be held in the same venue, and will take place on January 10-14, 2016.

==Background==

==Background==

NamesCon aims to be a prominent Domain Name industry conference for creating business opportunities and networking. The conference does not focus on policy or Internet Governance as [[ICANN Meetings]] do. Attendees include professional/aspiring domain developers, portfolio investors, private equity/venture capitalists, and brand marketing managers from top brands.

NamesCon aims to be a prominent Domain Name industry conference for creating business opportunities and networking. The conference does not focus on policy or Internet Governance as [[ICANN Meetings]] do. Attendees include professional and aspiring domain developers, portfolio investors, private equity/venture capitalists, and brand marketing managers from top brands.

===Domain Name Association Membership===

===Domain Name Association Membership===

==NamesCon 2016==

==NamesCon 2016==

NamesCon 2016 will take place January 10-14, 2016 at the Tropicana Las Vegas.  It begins as CES concludes, and the Affiliate Summit West conference takes place during an overlapping 3 days of NamesCon, so the attendance and audience diversity will be different and better than the previous two years, with more than 1000 attendees expected.

NamesCon 2016 will take place January 10-14, 2016 at the Tropicana Las Vegas.  It begins as CES concludes, and the Affiliate Summit West conference takes place during an overlapping 3 days of NamesCon. Attendance and audience diversity is therefore expected to be magnified in 2016, and conference producers intend to welcome more than 1,000 attendees.

==NamesCon 2015==

==NamesCon 2015==

NamesCon 2015 included [[DOMAINfest]] on its first day, and the overall show attracted more than 900 attendees, and had a wildly successful Domain Name Auction.  Because of the proximity on the calendar to the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) (January 6-9, 2015) and Affiliate Summit West (January 18-20, 2015), NamesCon attracted a large number of people who are in Las Vegas who are interested in domain names and learning about the opportunities that may exist within the new domain names being added to the Internet. CES attracts more than 160,000 people to Las Vegas, and a small percentage of those people are expected to have a keen interest in the new TLDs and domain names.

NamesCon 2015 included [[DOMAINfest]] on its first day, and the overall show attracted more than 900 attendees. The Domain Name Auction was a wildly successful event, organized by Right of the Dot.  Because of the proximity on the calendar to the Consumer Electronics Show (CES, January 6-9, 2015) and Affiliate Summit West (January 18-20, 2015), NamesCon attracted a large number of people already in Las Vegas who are interested in domain names and learning about the opportunities that exist within the new domain names being added to the Internet. CES attracts more than 160,000 people to Las Vegas, and a small percentage of those people are expected to have a keen interest in the new TLDs and domain names.

[[File:2015NamesConAndCESTiming.png|512px|right]]

[[File:2015NamesConAndCESTiming.png|512px|right]]

At the 2014 conference in January of 2014 the organizers initially expected 400 attendees, but eventually registrations went over the 600 mark.   It may have been the largest [[New gTLD]] conference to date.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/15509-namescon-will-be-biggest-new-gtld-show-yet NamesCon will be biggest New gTLD Show Yet, DomainIncite] Retrieved 8 Jan 2013</ref>

At the 2014 conference in January of 2014 the organizers initially expected 400 attendees, but registrations went over the 600 mark. It may have been the largest [[New gTLD]] conference to date.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/15509-namescon-will-be-biggest-new-gtld-show-yet NamesCon will be biggest New gTLD Show Yet, DomainIncite] Retrieved 8 Jan 2013</ref>

NamesCon confirmed that it had acquired [[DOMAINfest]], and that this would be part of NamesCon 2015.<ref>[http://www.domainnews.com/namescon-acquires-domainfest.html NamesCon acquires DOMAINfest] Retrieved 17th December 2014.</ref>

NamesCon confirmed that it had acquired [[DOMAINfest]], and that this would be part of NamesCon 2015.<ref>[http://www.domainnews.com/namescon-acquires-domainfest.html NamesCon acquires DOMAINfest] Retrieved 17th December 2014.</ref>

===DOMAINFest===

===DOMAINFest===

NamesCon purchased [[DOMAINfest]] in Late December 2014, and held DOMAINfest @NamesCon on 1/11 for people who may be new to domain names or the domain name industry, and the conference week will feature innovative content, deep-dive topics, and start-up contests that are focused around the innovation within a TLD. There will be a Chinese Domaining Masterclass <ref>[http://www.dnjournal.com/archive/lowdown/2014/dailyposts/20141202.htm Domain Name Journal] Retrieved 15th December 2014.</ref> sessions about IDN, Domain Investment, Domain Development, Registry Services, Marketing to the Registrar Channel, TLD CEO Roundtables, Legal and Rights Protections, Aftermarket Sessions, and many, many more topics.

NamesCon purchased [[DOMAINfest]] in Late December 2014, and held DOMAINfest @NamesCon on 1/11 for people who may be new to domain names or the domain name industry. The conference week featured innovative content, deep-dive topics and start-up contests focused around TLD innovations. A Chinese Domaining Masterclass <ref>[http://www.dnjournal.com/archive/lowdown/2014/dailyposts/20141202.htm Domain Name Journal] Retrieved 15th December 2014.</ref> session about IDN, Domain Investment, Domain Development, Registry Services, Marketing to the Registrar Channel, TLD CEO Roundtables, Legal and Rights Protections, Aftermarket Sessions was extremely popular with attendees.

==NamesCon 2014==

==NamesCon 2014==

NamesCon 2014 was hosted by [[Richard Lau]] and [[Jothan Frakes]] at Tropicana Las Vegas, and included sessions, panel discussion and presentations, as well as key note speeches and evening networking events. The sessions were categorized into one or more of 3 tracks: [[Registry]], [[Registrar]], and Registrant.<ref>[http://namescon.vegas/sessions/ Session, NamesCon] Retrieved 11 Nov 2013</ref>

NamesCon 2014 was hosted by [[Richard Lau]] and [[Jothan Frakes]] at Tropicana Las Vegas, and included sessions, panel discussion and presentations, as well as keynote speeches and networking events. The sessions were categorized into one or more of 3 tracks: [[Registry]], [[Registrar]], and Registrant.<ref>[http://namescon.vegas/sessions/ Session, NamesCon] Retrieved 11 Nov 2013</ref>

Session topics were on a wide range of [[Domain Name]] industry topics, with a focus on New [[gTLD]]s as [[ICANN]]'s [[New gTLD Program]] begins delegation of dozens of new [[Domain Name]]s. Topics include Brand Management, [[ccTLD]]s, Domain Hosting, [[DNS]], [[IDN]]s, and more.<ref>[http://name.eventbrite.com/ NamesCon, Eventbrite] Retrieved 11 Nov 2013</ref>

Session topics were on a wide range of [[Domain Name]] industry topics, with a focus on New [[gTLD]]s as [[ICANN]]'s [[New gTLD Program]] begins delegation of dozens of new [[Domain Name]]s. Topics include Brand Management, [[ccTLD]]s, Domain Hosting, [[DNS]], [[IDN]]s, and more.<ref>[http://name.eventbrite.com/ NamesCon, Eventbrite] Retrieved 11 Nov 2013</ref>

===Keynote Speakers===

===Keynote Speakers===

* [[Matt Mullenweg]] of [[WordPress]]

* [[Matt Mullenweg]] of [[WordPress]]

* [[Frank Schilling]], Managing Director of [[Uniregistry]]

* [[Frank Schilling]], Managing Director of [[Uniregistry]]

===Sessions===

===Sessions===

<b>Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014</b>

<b>Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014</b>

* Keynote by [[Jennifer Wolfe]]

* Keynote by [[Jennifer Wolfe]]