Google is getting ready to launch Google Domains, where you can get a website, web hosting, and a website editor like Wix.com (which is very SEO-unfriendly, by the way). And, Google is pitching the purchase of a shiny, new gTLD (Top Level Domain). But, instead of calling them what they really are (gTLDs), Google describe them like this:
New domain endings
Over the next few years, hundreds of new domain endings like .guru and .photography will become available. We will be working to provide you with as many options as possible so you can find the most relevant and meaningful names as you get started online.
Honestly, I have never heard a TLD, even the new gTLDs, called “domain endings”. Have you?
I could see Google potentially calling the new gTLDs “domain extensions”, which many people are probably familiar with. But “domain endings”? That copy on the Google site must have been written by someone who is not familiar with the new gTLDs, and most likely wouldn’t even know how to register one.
Here’s a list of new features that you’ll get. The domain names will cost $12 per year, which isn’t that expensive, but more than what GoDaddy charges (with a coupon).
— No additional cost for private registration
— Branded emails
— Easy domain forwarding
— Customizable sub-domains
— Fast, secure and reliable Internet infrastructure with Google
— Simple domain management tools
— Easy integration with top website builders
— New domain endings
— Support
I don’t expect you to get any extra SEO benefits from hosting your new domain name and website with Google, but you will probably get a pretty fast, secure, reliable website. Too bad it won’t be optimized properly, or very search engine friendly, though.