What is domain tasting? Registrars are allowed to register a domain at no cost for up to 5 days to get a “taste” of a domain to see if it meets their traffic needs.
Why is this a problem? There are two key issues at hand. The first being that a domain can essentially be “held hostage” for that 5 day period to see if the traffic is significant enough to “domain squat“. The other issue as is the case with Network Solutions a registrar has the capability to lock up the domain for 5 days after a search has been made, at no charge, which limits you from purchasing it within that period, if they themselves do not snatch it up.
Hopefully, this step by Google will help prevent the first instance of domain squatters by limiting the amount of income they would be able to make from text ads.