Domain Tasting

Domain tasting refers to the practice of purchasing an available domain name and ‘tasting’ or testing the domain during the 5-day add grace period (AGP) in order to determine the domain’s profitability and marketability. If a domain is deemed profitable, it is kept in the registrant’s portfolio. If it is not deemed profitable, the domain owner has the 5-day add grace period to receive a full refund on the registration.  Some registrants took this practice a step further and continually used the AGP to release and renew a domain within the 5 day grace period to use a domain name without actually paying for the domain.  Both practices are frowned upon by many and were greatly reduced in 2008 by new policies and fees put in place by ICANN and several domain name registries.