We already have enough sleazy domain squatters holding names for years and trading for ridiculous prices. Instead of long ownerships, we should have some way to prove you're actually using the domain after a certain number of years.
I disagree. At the end of the day, they are still vanity domain names. Adding more paperwork and process doesn't change that.
For example, pitch a solution that doesn't just make squatters upload some bare bones index.html. Or check a registrar's checkbox to park the domain somewhere with content. Or, well, upload the minimum amount of substance that you think is necessary.
Think about how you could possibly design such a program to ensure use, and how you'd prevent parking site services from cropping up that would make a site just meet the requirements for continuing registration. And if it's not a purely automated process, then the base registration price would have to go way up to pay for all the human work going into validations.
And now imagine the public outcry that can happen every time people have their domains taken from them (rightly or wrongly).
No, no registry wants to be in the business of doing that. You continue to pay for the name, it's yours.
We should stop calling organisations who hog domains in order to accrue an exaggerated profit from them "domain squatters". A real "domain squatter" should be someone who employs the "domain hogger's" domain until the domain hogger decides to actually do something with it themselves.
We wouldn't need such a profusion of TLDs (most of which are awful: .dev is an exception) if real domain squatting was made feasible.
The biggest problem with squatters is that they pay 100x less then you do for a domain. If they had to pay the same price they would squat on way less domains.
