Todd Han is the founder, president, and CEO of Dynadot, an ICANN accredited registrar and web hosting company. Todd founded Dynadot, headquartered in San Mateo in 2002, and the company later opened several international offices in Zhengzhou, Beijing, and Toronto. Todd was born in Taiwan and immigrated to the US with his parents at the age of 4.
Profile Questions
Name: Todd Han
Company: Dynadot LLC
Favorite Domain: dynadot.com
Favorite Industry Conference: NamesCon
Favorite Industry Blog(s): domainnamewire.com
Tell us a little bit about your background and your personal story.
I was born in Taiwan, and immigrated to the USA with my parents when I was 4. Since I was a kid, I loved technology and computers. Solving technical problems always came naturally to me. So running a domain registrar, which involves integrating lots of diverse platforms and APIs, suits me well.
How did you get involved in the domain industry?
Back in the year 2000 I was building websites for my mother. I was using another registrar at the time, and felt that I could write a better control panel. I have a background in software engineering. Being young and naive, and without much of a business plan, I just jumped in and started a registrar. It has been a fascinating journey so far.
What is your current role?
President of Dynadot.
Why did you choose to support the ICA?
I want to support an organization that looks out for the rights of domain registrants.
Can you share a prediction about the future of the domain industry?
The domain industry will become increasingly international. China and India are industrializing quickly, and all those increasingly affluent people will need domain names.
What do you like most about the domain industry?
The internet is the greatest invention in human history. It has revolutionized communication, information sharing, and learning. It is a giant storehouse of all human knowledge and wisdom. I remember when I was a child, I had to go to the library to learn from books. Now I can learn literally anything from the smartphone in my pocket. The internet has accelerated my rate of learning, and the rate of change of society in general. As domain industry professionals, we help run a key piece of internet infrastructure.
If you could change one thing about the domain industry what would it be?
I would like ICANN to be more responsive to the needs of registrars and registrants.
What do you think are some of the biggest challenges the domain industry is faced with?
I think a lot of people have had their confidence in ICANN shaken recently. Good governance is critical to the continued development of the internet.
What do you wish other people knew about the ICA?
ICA is grassroots in the true sense. It is about ordinary people working together to fight for what is right.
What would you tell someone who is thinking about joining the ICA?
I can recommend ICA without hesitation. They are efficiently run and effective in their advocacy.
What unexpected doors opened for you because of your involvement in the domain industry?
Because the domain industry is so international, I love being able to meet interesting people from all over the world.
What’s the best advice ever received (domain related or otherwise)?
I love Steve Jobs’ Stanford commencement speech. Life is short, so follow your heart, and trust that the dots will connect.
What are your main interests outside of the domain industry?
I love playing ultimate frisbee, and tango dancing.
Favorite place to get away:
Taipei
Anything else you’d like to share:
Just bought an electric bike. It is so fun, hope you can try one someday.