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OpenDNS: We're Now Used By 1% Of The Internet
When do ISPs start to realize that this is lost revenue?

OpenDNS executives probably huddle together each morning in a meeting room, praying to the digital gods for ISP DNS problems -- given that every time an ISP has a DNS disruption, the increasingly popular company sees an influx of new customers. OpenDNS this morning highlighted their growth by announcing that they now officially serve 1% of the Internet. That's a bigger number that it seems; the company says they've now reached 18 million of the world's 1.67 billion Internet users, and that their usage total has doubled in the last 12 months.

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OpenDNS was founded in 2006, and for most of that time they've been a very profitable company, largely thanks to search-based ads. In 2008 it was estimated that OpenDNS generates a whopping $20,000 per day off of their DNS redirection relationship with Yahoo.

Of course we're starting to see some ISPs realize that this is ad revenue they could be keeping in house. Comcast in particular has put a lot of effort lately into beefing up their DNS reliability and tools, including a new portal to track DNS uptime.

Added DNS functionality is by and large a neglected service aspect for many ISPs. Many ISP executives simply ran toward DNS redirection advertising (redirecting users trying to access mistyped or non-existent URLs toward an ad-laden search portal) with dollar signs in their eyes, without realizing that they might want to actually offer value. Worse, many of these DNS redirection systems don't even feature functional opt-out mechanisms.

Of course ISPs awakening from their slumber isn't the only obstacle facing OpenDNS moving forward. Last December Google announced they were launching Google Public DNS, and while OpenDNS founder David Ulevitch claimed Google's service wasn't going to compete with OpenDNS -- it's going to compete with OpenDNS.

Still, OpenDNS has successfully carved an 18-million-user strong niche by offering quality DNS tools and services, and if ISPs or Google want to claim that lost ad revenue, they're certainly going to have to work for it.
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hayabusa3303
Over 200 mph
Premium Member
join:2005-06-29
Florence, SC

1 recommendation

hayabusa3303

Premium Member

I like open dns

I just hope this doesnt goto there F.cking head and they start screwing up.
67845017 (banned)
join:2000-12-17
Naperville, IL

1 recommendation

67845017 (banned)

Member

Re: I like open dns

+1

PToN
Premium Member
join:2001-10-04
Houston, TX

PToN to hayabusa3303

Premium Member

to hayabusa3303
they always find a way to screw up things that are working fine... It's the "just wait and see" game...

davidu
join:2006-12-28
San Francisco, CA

davidu to hayabusa3303

Member

to hayabusa3303
said by hayabusa3303:

I just hope this doesnt goto there F.cking head and they start screwing up.
Me too! I'll beat people appropriately to keep them in submission, don't worry.
67845017 (banned)
join:2000-12-17
Naperville, IL

67845017 (banned)

Member

Re: I like open dns

lol. Well, you guys are doing a great job so far in my books. It's a very handy service. A little more detail on how to set up the routers would be good, but I managed my way through to what I exactly wanted.

Need an IP attorney (hey, you asked)?

Overtkill
Premium Member
join:2005-09-21
Tooele, UT

Overtkill to davidu

Premium Member

to davidu
Seconded.... Let's form an unruly mob with torches and pitchforks!
67845017 (banned)
join:2000-12-17
Naperville, IL

67845017 (banned)

Member

Re: I like open dns

Being the founder/CTO at OpenDNS means he probably doesn't need torches and pitchforks . . .
Mordhem
Love it, Hate it.
join:2003-07-10
Baltimore, MD

1 edit

Mordhem to davidu

Member

to davidu
Yea bro, you keep beating them! We love your service, even though I had to beat comcast off my *ss to be able to do so! lol

Ohh yea and to the other guy, you don't need pitch forks and crap when your The Big Boss like ole Dave here is lol, I just think he needs to share all those billions he has now, lmao.

If you need help switching your dns, anyone can feel free to ask me :-P I don't mind helping......... really...

Cho Baka
MVM
join:2000-11-23
there

Cho Baka

MVM

Re: I like open dns

said by Mordhem:

Yea bro, you keep beating them! We love your service, even though I had to beat comcast off my *ss to be able to do so! lol
That sounds kinda...

cameronsfx
join:2009-01-08
Panama City, FL

cameronsfx to hayabusa3303

Member

to hayabusa3303
said by hayabusa3303:

I just hope this doesnt goto there F.cking head and they start screwing up.
The problem is 99% of the population doesn't know how to use it. That's OpenDNS biggest problem.
k1ll3rdr4g0n
join:2005-03-19
Homer Glen, IL

k1ll3rdr4g0n

Member

Re: I like open dns

said by cameronsfx:

said by hayabusa3303:

I just hope this doesnt goto there F.cking head and they start screwing up.
The problem is 99% of the population doesn't know how to use it. That's OpenDNS biggest problem.
I disagree, I think OpenDNS's real problem is that 99% of the population doesn't know what DNS is.
Just because you can tell user's if they do this it will make their computer faster doesn't actually mean they will do it. But, if they understand what it will do for them then they are a lot more likely to follow through with it.

For example, you don't see a fat guy in an advertisement for diet pills.

dvd536
as Mr. Pink as they come
Premium Member
join:2001-04-27
Phoenix, AZ

dvd536 to hayabusa3303

Premium Member

to hayabusa3303
said by hayabusa3303:

I just hope this doesnt goto there F.cking head and they start screwing up.
I don't! I like 'clean' dns servers. opendns is no better than those money grubbing isps who employ redirects for extra cash on their subs backs.
67845017 (banned)
join:2000-12-17
Naperville, IL

1 recommendation

67845017 (banned)

Member

Re: I like open dns

Not really. As has been discussed quite a bit, OpenDNS gives those who want an extra degree of control over surfing habits (for family, corporate, etc.) a great tool.

If you need simple DNS services, I don't see the benefit in ODS.

cdru
Go Colts
MVM
join:2003-05-14
Fort Wayne, IN

cdru to dvd536

MVM

to dvd536
That's why you have the option to run your own.
otakuon
join:2005-04-06
Loma Linda, CA

otakuon

Member

Yeah

Funny thing is, this is EXACTLY why I started using OpenDNS...got tired of all the DDoS attacks against Time Warners DNS servers so I swtiched to OpenDNS...other than the fact that it sometimes does some wonky stuff to my network (especially with regards to certain VPN issues), I am quite satisified with their reliability.

hurleyp
join:2000-06-20
Ottawa, ON

hurleyp

Member

Re: Yeah

I like OpenDNS too. I've been using it for close to 3 years now, and I generally have good results.
duranr
join:2006-10-14
Leonia, NJ

duranr

Member

Quesiton

I don't really know all of the intricacies of it so please, go easy on me. Ok?

I know what DNS is. But What does OpenDNS do, that say, Google DNS and my ISP's DNS does not?

I started using Google DNS when they released it to the public last year. (I'm well aware that Google is logging my requests) But I haven't really seen difference. What should I be looking for in a provider aside from speed & uptime?
Phatty
join:2000-05-10
Saint Louis, MO

1 edit

1 recommendation

Phatty

Member

Re: Quesiton

said by duranr:

I don't really know all of the intricacies of it so please, go easy on me. Ok?

I know what DNS is. But What does OpenDNS do, that say, Google DNS and my ISP's DNS does not?

I started using Google DNS when they released it to the public last year. (I'm well aware that Google is logging my requests) But I haven't really seen difference. What should I be looking for in a provider aside from speed & uptime?
Speed, reliability, and with Opendns you can create an account and enter your IP address so that you can customize the type of filters you may or may not want. They also support blocking of known phishing/scam sites. OpenDNS is fast, and reliable, but if you take the time to setup an account that's where you can really benefit from their other services.

I use it at the office, at home, and have my parents network setup to use it as well. Its not always the fastest, but the customizations and reliability make it worth using them.
chimera4
join:2009-06-09
Washington, DC

chimera4

Member

Re: Quesiton

We've also used it when clients who can't afford to have a solid website blocking system put into place needed to block off sites like youtube. Sure, you can get around this if you know what you're doing but 99% of users don't so it works well enough.

yongar
join:2000-12-08
Virginia Beach, VA

yongar to Phatty

Member

to Phatty
well put. I used OpenDNS for the same reason. I use it for some of my small business clients and they have filtering on for some of the sites they like to block.

fifty nine
join:2002-09-25
Sussex, NJ

fifty nine

Member

No ads in my DNS please

Dear ISP, I don't want ads in my DNS. Please don't break DNS and put ads in my DNS!

toddbs98
join:2000-07-08
North Little Rock, AR

toddbs98

Member

Re: No ads in my DNS please

You mean the way OpenDNS does?

Thane_Bitter
Inquire within
Premium Member
join:2005-01-20

Thane_Bitter

Premium Member

Re: No ads in my DNS please

said by toddbs98:

You mean the way OpenDNS does?
LOL, so true they do it as well.

fifty nine
join:2002-09-25
Sussex, NJ

fifty nine to toddbs98

Member

to toddbs98
said by toddbs98:

You mean the way OpenDNS does?
I don't really use OpenDNS, but if they have ads, I would be reluctant to use them.

FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

FFH5

Premium Member

Re: No ads in my DNS please

said by fifty nine:
said by toddbs98:

You mean the way OpenDNS does?
I don't really use OpenDNS, but if they have ads, I would be reluctant to use them.
There is a way to setup your free account so that their DNS returns plain vanilla DNS lookup failures without returning any ads. But then you can't use their filtering features, which is one of their major selling points.

fifty nine
join:2002-09-25
Sussex, NJ

1 edit

1 recommendation

fifty nine

Member

Re: No ads in my DNS please

Yeah. No thanks. I'll just use my ISP's DNS servers until they decide to monetize it. And if/when they do, it's trivial to setup my own.
VentShop
join:2009-08-21
Oklahoma City, OK
ARRIS CM8200
(Software) OPNsense
Netgear R8000

VentShop

Member

Re: No ads in my DNS please

I actually do some things a little different, I use one open DNS one google public DNS and one of my ISP's dns server my Rotuer has the option to set up to 5 I believe. Anyway since I started doing things this way I have had Zero issues with DNS. At one point in time I was having major lag issues with Open DNS response times ( I believe my ISP was having a few technical issues a the time ) but my ISP DNS was supplying information fast. I decided WTH and figured using 3 seperate DNS sources would save a few headaches. Even if one or another is tracking information it's not like I am going to use the same one each time.
bradleym
join:2002-08-05
Peoria, IL

bradleym to toddbs98

Member

to toddbs98
said by toddbs98:

You mean the way OpenDNS does?
Exactly.

FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

1 edit

1 recommendation

FFH5

Premium Member

OpenDNS value add is their filters

While many don't like the idea of filters, if you have kids, OpenDNS provides a full set of filtering tools for free that is more difficult for kids to bypass than some PC based tools. Or OpenDNS can be used in conjunction with PC based filters to make it harder for kids to find a way around the blocks.






I put on a block list those country codes(like CN for China) where much malware originates. Here is a sample list of web sites blocked by the tool in the last 2 weeks:



I am not going to those sites, but they are in search results in Google News; ads placed on some web pages; etc. These web sites are not necessarily malware. They are just using country code domains that host a lot of malware and that I have no intention of visiting directly. »us.mcafee.com/en-us/loca ··· mary.pdf

In any case, these filters bolster security a little and make the system safer. Especially when a PC is used by kids.

fifty nine
join:2002-09-25
Sussex, NJ

fifty nine

Member

Re: OpenDNS value add is their filters

So all a kid would have to do to bypass the OpenDNS filter is to use another dns server.

FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

FFH5

Premium Member

Re: OpenDNS value add is their filters

said by fifty nine:

So all a kid would have to do to bypass the OpenDNS filter is to use another dns server.
If you put the OpenDNS addresses in the router; password protect chgs; allow no remote router chgs; etc, and then make sure they have restricted PC accounts with no access to system files where they can change DNS settings, and use PC based security & filter pgms, you can lock down the systems.

Some kids may learn to get around some of these blocks; but they will leave a trail that you can check, including email alerts to the parents account if bypass attempts are made.

•••••••••
Ammler
Premium Member
join:2005-04-19
Pittsburgh, PA

Ammler to fifty nine

Premium Member

to fifty nine
Or connect to your neighbor's unsecured wireless router, using their ISP's unfiltered DNS servers.

••••••••
patcat88
join:2002-04-05
Jamaica, NY

1 edit

patcat88

Member

watch

Watch, soon your ISP will filter all port 53 traffic except to their DNS server, just like with SMTP. They will claim its to prevent spyware from hijacking your DNS settings and spoofing your address bar.
iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Austin, TX

iansltx

Member

Re: watch

They'll be more sneaky than that: since DNS is UDP traffic (no 3-way handshake) they can just act as if they're whatever DNS server you're using and respond, then block the server that actually was supposed to receive the request. I think CHarter might have actually done that.
34764170 (banned)
join:2007-09-06
Etobicoke, ON

34764170 (banned) to patcat88

Member

to patcat88
said by patcat88:

Watch, soon your ISP will filter all port 53 traffic except to their DNS server, just like with SMTP. They will claim its to prevent spyware from hijacking your DNS settings and spoofing your address bar.
Except blocking TCP/25 makes A LOT of sense for dynamic users.

tvtek
Live life to its fullest
Premium Member
join:2004-03-07
Walnut Creek, CA

1 recommendation

tvtek

Premium Member

I use Open DNS

I have a 8 year old who has his own computer and Open DNS allows me to filter what comes through our home network. I set it up on the home router so that way any pc connecting through it is filtered. It also prevents my son from any work around. Best part is its free to use.

••••••••••••••••••••••••

The Beer
I Love It When A Plan Comes Together
Premium Member
join:2001-07-24
Lincoln, NE

The Beer

Premium Member

Not the fan I was

I use to be a big fan of OpenDNS but I am losing my taste for it. I was such a fan I did an interview for the WSJ at one time about them.

Today I think the search relevant ads are never relevant at all, OpenDNS just needs to be bought by Google so the darn typos are relevant.

The new "Enterprise" features are FAR too expensive and the content filtering is so/so. I had some sites in the past week that were banned just start working for a few hours then banned again.

Once there is a competitor to OpenDNS I will more than likely give them a shot unless they make some changes to what happens when you do make a typo.
iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Austin, TX

iansltx

Member

GoogDNS isn't a competitor

Like OpenDNS said, Google Public DNS isn't really a big deal. Google's network isn't the most low-latency out there, so DNS queries take a bit to go through. Google doesn't insert ads or redirect anything, but neither does OpenDNS if you ask them not to. OTOH OpenDNS allows a lot of customization that you can't do with a standard DNS service, and their servers are reasonably close to much of the Internet.

Sure a few folks will go from OpenDNS to Google, but not a ton.
mexicali100
join:2010-01-04
Schenectady, NY

mexicali100

Member

Re: GoogDNS isn't a competitor

Where Google poses a threat is in the simplicity of their DNS ip addresses. I prefer to use OpenDNS but if I'm not in a position (or mood) to look up OpenDNS' ip addresses, I just put in goog's 8.8.8.8. OpenDNS ip addresses are very easy to get wrong - or at least second guess yourself. - Too many variations of numbers full of 2s.
iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Austin, TX

iansltx

Member

Re: GoogDNS isn't a competitor

This is true, though if I want to do a quick DNS setup I'll just use 4.2.2.4-4.2.2.6

EGeezer
Premium Member
join:2002-08-04
Midwest

EGeezer

Premium Member

Protect the children, fight terrorism

I can see the ISPs lobbying for laws to allow them to force customers to use their DNS, saying it's dangerous for users to use other services, that they'd be redirected to malware, child porn, be attacked by terrorists etc.

Protect the children, save grandma from attack, fight terrorism!!!

jester121
Premium Member
join:2003-08-09
Lake Zurich, IL

jester121

Premium Member

Unclear...

In 2008 it was estimated that OpenDNS generates a whopping $20,000 per day off of their DNS redirection relationship with Yahoo.
So at what point does a company become large enough to be subject to scorn here on the BBR news pages? Is it $10 million/$100 million/$1 billion in revenue?

Clearly OpenDNS is still too small to qualify for the anti-capitalist attacks and slanted coverage, but those greedy ISP executives aren't, assuming they're from large targets like Comcast & AT&T.
Many ISP executives simply ran toward DNS redirection advertising (redirecting users trying to access mistyped or non-existent URLs toward an ad-laden search portal) with dollar signs in their eyes, without realizing that they might want to actually offer value.


I guess OpenDNS "deserves" the millions they make serving up ads. If they keep doubling in size every year they'll probably turn evil soon. If someone could clear this up for me, I'd appreciate it.

Jim Kirk
Premium Member
join:2005-12-09
49985

Jim Kirk

Premium Member

Re: Unclear...

Sigh

QQ

blueeyesm
join:2003-09-05
Waterloo, ON

blueeyesm to jester121

Member

to jester121
They aren't gouging the consumer needlessly.
bt
join:2009-02-26
canada

bt

Member

Google is only a partial competitor

Google will compete with OpenDNS for people just looking to ditch their ISP DNS servers. But then, the same goes for the number of other freely available DNS servers out there (IE: Level3).

Where Google doesn't compete with people who go to OpenDNS for the added functionality (the parental controls that others have mentioned being the big one). I have yet to hear of another free DNS provider that has similar functionality available to it's users.
flbas1
join:2010-02-03
Fort Lauderdale, FL

flbas1

Member

hidden bonuses

you can easily block the ad's on your mobile device (iphone, android, etc) by using OpenDNS.

If you are being charged for bandwidth - cut the ads and watch your usage drop.

or, just cut the ads and watch the pages load faster.

dishu
@pool.invitel.hu

dishu

Anon

odns

Oh Google please FU moneyhungry beast.
After china thrown you out we will throw you out from the EU as well and denying to make more search farms or dns servers or whatever here.

20K profit/day = small company. Perfect target for poogle to pwn them.
I using odns since many years and I even know their addresses from head cause it comes handy along with 4.2.2.1 when you are on network X and you don't know the DNS from whatever reason.

Their dns is fast and the uptime is excellent. Since years there was only one time I can recall that it went out for couple of hours.

•••
n2ubp
join:2007-07-13
Middletown, NY

n2ubp

Member

opendns breaks my work VPN connection

If I use opendns, I can no longer surf my companies internal web sites. opendns tells me those urls are invalid.

DHRacer
Tech Monkey
join:2000-10-10
Lake Arrowhead, CA

DHRacer

Member

Re: opendns breaks my work VPN connection

wierd, that works for me using opendns and a vpn to my work. maybe your vpn is not configured correctly?

kdanielle113
join:2010-03-22

kdanielle113

Member

google dns

I use Google DNS and I've never been unsatisfied with it.
qworster
join:2001-11-25
Bryn Mawr, PA

1 edit

qworster

Member

I use these DNSes

My first choice is Open DNS. It's fast and reliable.

Second choice is Google DNS. (8.8.4.4) Not as fast as Open DNS but close.

Third choice is 4.2.2.1. Very fast for me.

Fourth choice is Comodo.

For your best DNS, I'd try DNS Benchmark. Just Google it. Free.
broccoli
join:2007-11-29
Portland, OR
Draytek Vigor2860Vac
EnGenius EAP600
Obihai OBi100

broccoli

Member

My workplace uses OpenDNS...

and its web content filtering, and I hate it. Unlike real content filtering services like Websense (which my previous employer used), OpenDNS classifies addresses rather than URLs. One 'inappropriate' picture or link on a website is enough to get it blocked completely, which is simply ridiculous. Not to mention all the site tagging info is submitted by users (essentially anyone). How reliable is that.

At home I use the 4.2.2.x servers and they work great. No ads. No URL hijacking. No registration.

megatop
@optonline.net

megatop

Anon

Huh?

All you folks seem thrilled to funnel your internet usage through yet another advertising-supported entity.

Personally, I find my ISP's DNS servers excellent (at least you can disable their typo redirect ad pages).

cork1958
Cork
Premium Member
join:2000-02-26

1 edit

cork1958

Premium Member

Not bad, but definitely not the best!

Used them for a good while until after creating an account there, and then started noticing hits on my router when booting up. Cut!! They're gone!!

I use grc's dnsbenchmark program. Just so happens the best dns servers for me, on this machine, right now, are ns2.sprintlink.net and ns3.sprintlink.net.

Opendns and Google are both quite a ways down on the list of fastest dns servers for me anyway.
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