Clarivate has once again surveyed global business leaders about the importance of domain names to their organizations, including the role of domains as intellectual property (IP) assets. The 2020 survey followed up on our 2019 survey, revealing key year-over-year trends in how organizations manage, secure and budget for domain names. In this blog, we review key trends from the new report. Read more here.

Cybersecurity is top priority

Organizations reported an increased prevalence of cyber-attacks targeting their domains, with many reporting losses to data, revenue and reputation as a result. Unsurprisingly, security was also reported as the biggest challenge when managing a domain portfolio. Overtaking “promoting new products or services” which topped our 2019 survey, “mitigating brand abuse” is now the biggest factor motivating domain management strategies. Our report highlights the top security tactics organizations are deploying as best practices for domain protection.

Domain names are considered valuable IP assets

Survey results show an increasing number of organizations actively monitor the value of their domains, with the vast majority of respondents characterizing domains as an important part of their IP portfolio, on par with patents and trademarks.

Domain portfolio size, complexity and spend continue to grow

Reflecting the increased need for security and increased value attributed to domain names as IP assets, 2020 saw continued growth in the number of organizations using new generic Top-Level Domains (new gTLDs), an increase in overall domain portfolio size, and a resulting increase in total domain spend. With growing portfolio size, importance and complexity, organizations increasingly report making domain decisions by committee.