Hello fellow Lemmings! I hope this is the right place to ask this. I don’t understand how web domains work. Let’s say I want to buy the domain “abcdefghi.net”. I can go to a domain provider like haruba or godaddy and just buy it. but how can they, a private, sell me these domains? I’m not talking about the hosting, but just the domain. where do they register this domain I’m buying? isn’t it possible to register it myself instead of paying these services to do it for me?
Just to expand on the other (excellent) answers.
Why can’t you buy a bottle of ketchup directly from Heinz? Well, Heinz only sell wholesale to other businesses, like supermarkets. That’s a simple model for them - not having to sell to end users. They don’t want to be in a retail business because it’s cheaper selling to other businesses.
Additionally, most people don’t want to go to the Heinz shop for their ketchup and the Hellmans Shop for their mayonnaise. Most customers want one place where they can buy all their condiments together.
Registrars buy domains wholesale from registries. So you can go to a registrar and buy a .com or .co.uk and email hosting and a blogging platform.
I don’t think there are any Registries which sell direct to end customers. They don’t want your £10 - they want a Registrar’s £10,000.