You Can't Spell .mobi Without "MOB"

Forget the Sopranos. How about ICANN? How can you get a gig to be the OFFICIAL organization that gets to extort money from every single corporation and wannabe company in the world?

I'm talking about the .mobi extension. Paying to get your .mobi extension is like extorsion, isn't it? The mob (ICANN) comes to you and tells you (use your favorite gangster voice), "yo, I suggest you pay the fee and nobody gets hurt. I would also suggest auto-renewal. Otherwise? Maybe all of a sudden you won't be found in Google, or anywhere else, capische? Oh, and by the way, because you're a big company with money (ahem!), I mean, for your protection, we're going to charge you a higher rate, to dissuade those nasty cyber-squatters (not that we know any) from coming in and damaging your name. You wouldn't want that, now would you? Oh, and if you have any other companies or brands, you wouldn't want them to get hurt either, would you?"

What a scam. I mean, how many of these companies REALLY believe that this is where they have to be, at least right now? To which of these companies is it really THAT important? I mean, do you really need to be checking job listings on your phone (Hot Jobs was reportedly one of the first to sign up)? I can barely get through the day on my crappy battery just using the phone for what it's for -- CALLS. Really, what's the rush? We've been hearing about this mobile phone jazz for about five years now. It's coming, I know, but it's not here yet, that's for sure.

Anyway, I'm not really mad at ICANN. I just want to be jumped in. I want to be made.