Will apps lead to the end of the web browser and the demise of domain names industry?

[Infoproliferati]

This article scared me a little. Okay may be more than a little:

http://www.wired.com/magazine/2010/08/ff_webrip/all/1

What is the possibility that apps are going to replace the web browser as the primary platform for accessing content?

While it is still too early to tell I suspect that the proliferation of mobile apps will extend to the desktop. And if it does the domain names industry might go through a serious depression.

The internet is really a veritable beast. If apps and http for some reason are able to cohabit as internet navigation tools, then this business of online advertising will only get more competitive. And the value of domains will only sky rocket. I think.

 

[south]

Been concerned about it for awhile myself. Not sure how it can help domains, only see the contrary. Why browse or even search for something when you can go directly to it with an app? Not to say they wipe out the web, but I expect they will (and already are) put(ing) a dent in web browsing.

 

[Gerry]

It is an incredible fascinating article. WIRED.com is a regular stop for me several times a day.

I subscribe to their magazine (have been from their first edition) and I am currently reading their cover article now, The Web is Dead.

With tablets, apps, smartphones, and the consumers' need for instant gratification...all is possible.

Already I am seeing several articles and techno people relate that the end of the netbook and laptop is close at hand. Now everyone is in a tablet frenzy - Dell just released on, HP is releasing one, Google is about to release their own Android tablet.

Someone in India is close to marketing and releasing a tablet for $50 bucks.

But you know what the most fascinating aspect of this is? Someone (he is a member on this forum but rarely posts) personally described this entire process, the programming of, and technology to me about 2-3 years ago as what was going to become huge - apps and simply touch the screen and get to the site. Honestly, he was talking way above my level of understanding then (because there was really so little to compare it to - we are talking pre-iPhone). However, since owning an iPod touch, a smart phone or two (currently the Google Nexus One Android) and the iPad I fully understand and appreciate his knowledge of this technology (or the programming made possible from the technology).

The total adoption of this is, of course, several years off. All one has to do is look at the success of the iPhone and iPad and apps downloaded. Then along comes Android and kicks butt for another market share. Realizing that there is NO browser search box to even possibly end up at the wrong site (a typo) is not too reassuring for the typo mavens.

Of course every site ultimately has to "live" somewhere, as in a URL. But it is how we get there that will be a game changer. No type in search? Hmm. That's certainly not good in some aspects.

I've actually been wondering how much of this has already been a factor in declining revenues/traffic from parking.

What's the answer to this? Well, I don't think it can be stopped, I don't think it can be conquered, but I do think it is still in its infancy but growing at an incredible pace. So the answer is to join in. It's WAY past time to learn how to create your own sites and your own apps. Or start teaming up or creating your own consortium of programmers, designers, developers, and marketing people.

 

[Infoproliferati]

I guess when DNF releases its own mobile or tablet app, then we are all toast. I'd really like to know what domain industry professionals think about the effects of the growing apps trend on domains. I suppose as long as we still use our netbooks and desktops there is hope of domains holding on to their value. The moment when app driven tablets take over is when the curtain falls. This could take another decade or 2 which isn't a long time.

This raises all sorts of questions: what types of workstations will we have at the office or libraries? how will we discover user generated content by individuals?

 

[VirtualT]

I can't see the www as a source of information dying out any time soon, don't forget that a browser is an app that runs on top of the internet, business will always need an online store front, sure there might be new apps built on top of the www to make navigation easier but unless everyone has fixed IP addresses that never changes we will always need dns and domains.

Of course more protocols and closed networks will appear on the internet as time goes by reducing www traffic (by percentage), this doesn't reduce the value of http, if anything the absolute volume of www traffic is probably still increasing.

 

[katherine]

15 years ago it was said domain names would become less relevant because of the search engines.
But even apps makers still need an address where they can be found.

 

[hugegrowth]

I think apps and domains will just co-exist. Apps can act like a bookmark or short cut to your favorite subjects or sites, but they can't do everything for you. I can see 'apps fatigue' happening, and management of apps becoming a burden. And domains will always work great for print and billboard ads, and on business cards. The way I look at it, all these apps and app companies will need a domain name, so it just increases the demand for good domains. I rarely use apps myself, and don't have an iphone or tablet, but I do recognize their use is growing.

 

[ksinclair]

OP, the standard answer is this: yes, you are right, domains will go away, please sell me all your domains for very cheap!

 

[Infoproliferati]

OP, the standard answer is this: yes, you are right, domains will go away, please sell me all your domains for very cheap!

lol. Okay it may be a longshot. But what if accessing the internet through domains really becomes secondary to apps in say 20 to 25 years? Then the only worth of domains would be to act as an address and link servers to apps. Type in traffic may become really old fashioned.

 

[Tia Wood]

Yes, apps will lead to the end of the web browser. Here are some other predictions so we can prepare for them:

• Email will be the end of snail mail.
• The internet will be the end of brick and mortar businesses.
• Instant messenger will be the end of the phone.
• Camera phones will be the end of cameras.

The point is that extreme adaption and replacement will need to take place in order for there to be "an end of". I don't see that happening.

Do you really believe all the companies involved with web browsing are going to sit back and allow that to happen? No, they will keep a tight flow of things to recreate demand and keep interest.

 

[David G]

Kind of ironic because your examples are a long way to being true to a good degree what with postal mail volume down, brick & mortars closing, land line phones disappearing and regular camera sales probably down too.

Yes, apps will lead to the end of the web browser. Here are some other predictions so we can prepare for them:

• Email will be the end of snail mail.
• The internet will be the end of brick and mortar businesses.
• Instant messenger will be the end of the phone.
• Camera phones will be the end of cameras.

The point is that extreme adaption and replacement will need to take place in order for there to be "an end of". I don't see that happening.

Do you really believe all the companies involved with web browsing are going to sit back and allow that to happen? No, they will keep a tight flow of things to recreate demand and keep interest.

 

[Tia Wood]

Kind of ironic because your examples are a long way to being true to a good degree what with postal mail volume down, brick & mortars closing, land line phones disappearing and regular camera sales probably down too.

There are other factors involved (economy, offline competition, etc). Email may have taken a hit on snail mail but it survived and raised its prices. Brick and Mortars are closing but there are plenty who have learned to fuse their business with online. Land line phones might be disappearing but cable companies do a good job selling internet phone lines. And there will always be a need for a good quality camera in multiple formats. Companies adapt. No "end of" for web browers or domains.