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What’s In A Name? A Google By Any Other Name Would Smell As Sweet Still Destory Ask.Com In Online Ad Revenues
Are Short Abbreviations Threatening The Sanctity Of Online Domain Names? One Questionably Objective Expert Says ‘Yes’

Apparently, not everyone is so keen on the growing number of major corporations who are using “nonsense” domain names or “familiar-but-misspelled words” as part of an effort to soften their online images. Take, for example, Anthony Shore, a seemingly ill-tempered man whom the Washington Post introduces as “the global of director of naming and writing” [Ed: Easiest job ever?] at Landor Associates.

“It just feels like they’re throwing in the towel,” complains the naming elitist. “It’s easy to find an existing word and drop out a letter. It’s easy to come up with arbitrary sounds, or to just add an ‘oo.’ It’s far more difficult to come up with names with real words that have meanings and connections with people.”

Geez, sounds like someone’s a little worried that his professional naming credentials, whatever those are, might be threatened by a bunch of amateurs!

And frankly, we’re sort-of offended. See, it’s not always about merely subtracting a letter or adding a fun, Seuss-like “oo” sound, Anthony. Sometimes, you also have to have the wit/ingenuity to add a letter. Like, say, in the case of a certain magenta-themed website that represents a brilliant conflation of “journalism” and “gossip.” And was totally ahead of its time.

Nov 28, 2007 · Link · Repond

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Tagged: Internet · Names · Technology · Trends

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