To what degree is protective domain name registration useful?

Well when push comes to shove a registered Trademark will trump a domain name. Its a good idea to lock up the key domain names you want, but I would also evaluate your trademark strategy.

You will never be able to fully register domain names because there are just so many LTDs. Having said that, you will definitely need to register domain extensions such as .com, .co, and some country LTDs into which you will need to break.

For other extensions, it is the activity those registrants are doing that matters. Registering a domain name containing your trademark is not a trademark infringement per se. Periodically, you will need to check whether other registrants are using your trademarks in that domain name. If so, send them a cease and desist letter. If not, you don't have to worry.

Hope this answer helps you.

Choosing a name for your startup largely depends upon the availability of the domain name rather than what you have decided. Hoarding domain names is not something which is appreciated by people. The psychology behind a good domain name lies in the fact how easy it is to remember and type the domain name. If you are in a business where your website is the mode of transaction (e-commerce, social networks, content sharing or any other web-based service) then it can largely impact the amount of hits and revenue of your business.

One meaningful domain name that covers the scope of your products is most useful-spend your time and money on your name versus trying to outhink someone else.

For example, GitHub.com bought GHUB.com for 12,600 USD in September 2012. Though the name is not popular, the company felt it was a strategic investment. Box.com which is a competitor to DropBox has a huge advantage in terms of its domain name and the ease of use. Box.com reportedly bought this for a close to 9,00,000 USD.

Real estate celebrity Housing.com reportedly bought the .com extension for one million USD. All to save the effort from co.in to .com. Dot com easily registers in people’s mind apart from the fact that nearly all browsers support ctrl+enter for.com.

Bottom line- think strategically about the needs and uses of your domain name- if you know your market and your similar, collateral, and disruptive competitors, you can devise a domain name that makes business, economic, and strategic sense.