Forget flowers, gift a website

Net-savvy Puneites warm up to idea of gifting domain names and customised personal websites to their near and dear ones on birthdays and other special ocassions

When it comes to gifts, flowers and chocolates have become passu00e9. Puneites are increasingly opting to gift domain names, websites and blogs.

Abbas Suterwala (25) was surprised when his mother Farida gifted him a domain name on his birthday last month. Farida said that she had had enough of usual gifts. "The charges for a domain name were nominal just
Rs 450 for a year and he loved it," she said.

Echoed Mumbai-based scriptwriter Karan Agarwal (26), "I hate gifts you can buy off the rack. I wanted something unique and personal for my girlfriend, so I gifted her a domain."

10 per cent rise
Saurabh Jain of Thinking Space Technologies in Vishrant Wadi, said, "Since we set up the firm, we've had no enquiries for gifting websites or domain names. But in the past one year, we've had a few enquiries every couple of months."

Agreed Darsheel Patel of Pinnacle Pixel, a web solutions provider based in Mumbai. "Till two years ago, we didn't have any business from gifting. In the past 18 months, 40 out of the 300 domain names I registered have been gifts," he said.

Gift a blog
Added Hoze M of Hozella Design, "I have had many requests for unique gifts like domain names and personalised web albums. There has been a 10 per cent jump in business this year compared to last year."

Blogs too are popular gifts. When Vidya and Yogesh Iyer from Bangalore tied the knot, they were gifted a wedding blog. "It was so unique and unexpected. We totally loved it," said Vidya.

Mumbai-based Shirin Thekedar not only bought a domain name for her sister-in-law, but also designed it. "I'll also help her host it," said Thekedar, who bought the domain name online for $11 (Rs 524) and said hosting costs will amount to about $60 (Rs 2,857) per year.