Chinese characters can't be typed directly into a classic domain name, and pinyin spellings are easy to get wrong. Digits are universal. That's why some of China's best-known web properties used numeric addresses and why numeric .coms became an asset class of their own.
The scarcity math
| Length | Possible .coms |
|---|---|
| 2 digits (NN) | 100 |
| 3 digits (NNN) | 1,000 |
| 4 digits (NNNN) | 10,000 |
| 5 digits | 100,000 |
| 6 digits | 1,000,000 |
Scarcity drives price. Two- and three-digit .coms have sold for six and seven figures. In 2015, a wave of investment from China quickly cleared out the remaining short numeric names.
"CHIP" names
Chinese investors often prefer "Chinese premium" names that contain no 0 or 4. Names with a leading 0 are valued less by that group. But a six-digit name starting with 000 reads exactly like a mainland securities code, which is a natural fit for finance, data and market-education brands.
What drives value
- Length: shorter is rarer.
- Lucky digits (8, 6, 9) and patterns (888, 168, 518).
- Repetition and memorability (AAAA, ABAB).
- A readable meaning (dates, codes, slang).
- Traffic, history and a clean trademark position.