DOMAIN GAMES

"If your company identity and your domain name have a slight difference, you're indicating to people you don't have your act together," said Griffin Stenger of Concept Farm in New York. "Domain names are much more than an address. It's all things in one: your brand, your reason for being."

The recent volatility in high tech stocks has done little to change demand for domain names. Salvatore Cicero, editor of Domain Name News in Hartford, Conn., said that even if tech stocks have fallen in value, corporate leaders still believe the Internet represents the future when it comes to reaching consumers. They expect computers eventually to be like television sets, with one in practically every home in America.

"And a good domain name is always going to bring traffic. The more consumers you have, the more business you're going to have," Cicero said.

Preston Dodd, a senior analyst with the Internet research firm Jupiter Communications, said, "In large degree, business and the Internet are going to be one and the same."

Domain names "will continue to be incredibly important," he said.

But with so many Internet names already taken, many companies are learning that their corporate IDs better match their domain names -- or a Web surfer won't be able to find their sites.

The choice, according to corporate executives, marketing consultants and companies who specialize in registering domain names, is relatively simple: Either pay thousands or even millions of dollars for the name that you want, or settle on a domain name - the equivalent of a Web address -- you can afford and change your corporate identity, logo and letterhead.

Lou Piconi, chief executive of Pittsburgh-based WiredOrg.com, had an idea for a company to be called "Digital Triangle" that would specialize on supplying secure business tools on the Web. The problem was, "Digital Triangle" was taken.

He tried to negotiate with the owner.

"We started with a couple of hundred bucks. He got to the place where he was asking for $100,000," Piconi said. "We decided not to go with that name."

"My Digital Triangle" was available, but Piconi and consultants his firm hired decided to go with "WiredOrg.com," believing this name would be a better fit. And that was only after looking at as many as 100 new names.

The change meant the new company had to reincorporate, change its bank accounts and deal with other housekeeping measures, including getting rid of promotional T-shirts that had been printed.

"We were just backed into a corner. There was nothing else we could do," Piconi said.

Stenger and his partners at Concept Farm, which does advertising and marketing, had their heart set on the name "IdeaFarm.com." It also was unavailable.

The firm went through 60 names, using registrar sites to scout new names.

There's no trick to getting a domain name. One of the most popular domain sources, Network Solutions, allows you to register your name for two years, for just $70. The problem is finding the available name that you want.

It's critical that a company's name and domain match, said Richard Forman, president and chief executive of Register.com. "To do it otherwise, that just doesn't fly anymore."

Take the case of Onyx -- now OnX -- a Canadian firm created 17 years ago, specializing in Internet and Web applications for businesses.

Three years ago, a man called the company, telling one of its founders, Phil De Leon, that he owned the rights to the name "Onyx" and was ready to auction it off. Bidding started at $150,000, De Leon said. It quickly jumped to $175,000.

No thanks, said DeLeon. So the company settled on OnX and spent millions rebranding its products.

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