Domain Name Expired - More Help Needed

[chris ashdown]

Further to Martins reply, Also tell them you have now purchased the .co.uk address to use and only willing to pay the original $90 asked on the other site
as you will only be using it to forward onto the new site

[Sean Williams]

Domain squatting is on the increase. I have even been on the phone to a client discussing domain names and we had decided on one but chatted for a while and it had been registered by a squatter when we went back. Its happened a few times now and its almost as if something is tracking the domains being checked and registering them

I always check domains by browser in the first instance and when I'm sure I want it, I then do the whois via nominet/networksolutions etc in the hope that they have enough integrity not to be spying on the whois requests. I would never use a search engine!

We registered both .com and .co.uk domains on one of our websites 9 years ago. Then, despaite having paid for the renewal on the .com (in plenty of time), networksolutions sold it to someone else! Unbelievable. Eventually they entrenched their position and said 'sue us' guessing (correctly) it wouldn't be worth our while.
It then came up on a squatting site last year - for $2000!
Today, I find someone has bought it and is using it to forward to their own, competitor website in the US under a completely different name.....

I now register every possible useful version of a site via 1and1 so they get renewed automatically.

[party_pete]

A domain name I wanted had expired and after contacting nominet on 13th October 2006, they stated that;

xxx.co.uk has only just been suspended. It is scheduled to be
cancelled on or after the 8 December 2006.

A domain name is cancelled at random by our systems once the minimum
suspension period has been served and this is made available on a
'first-come, first-served' basis. This is done in order to remain fair to
all prospective registrants.

So, as I haven't the time to check daily, I purchased a Domain Watcher from 123-reg, so they would register the domain for me as soon as it became available.

On 4th January 2007, I email Nominet, to ask when the domain was likely to become available, and got this response;

Having checked our records I can confirm that the domain name,
letsparty2.co.uk was cancelled on the 9 December 2006, making it available
for registration on a 'first-come, first-served' basis.

The domain name was subsequently re-registered on the 13 December 2006 by
a company called Hi-Res. The new registration details can be viewed using
our WHOIS facility, blah blah blah

I then contacted 123-reg to ask why the domain had not been registered by them on my behalf and they said

Unfortunately the domain watcher does not guarantee a purchase of the
domain. As you can appreciate we are not the only company that offers
this as a service.
What it does do however is give you more of a chance to be able to
purchase it first, as domain registration is based on a first come first
served basis

Just my experience............

[jont]

Pretty good of them to sell you a service on the expectations it will work! They are correct in what they say so I trust they have made their position more clear on what it can and can not do for you before others part with money?

[party_pete]

I purchased the Domain Watcher from 123-reg because this is what they quoted on their website (unedited);

Is the .com, .net or .org domain name that you wanted already taken? With 123-reg.co.uk you can now proactively watch domain names, and have them registered as soon as they expire, are deleted, or become available for any reason.

Research shows that out of over 30 million .com, .net and .org domains registered across the world, only around 10% of these are being actively used. Many domains are not renewed on expiry, or can suddenly become available for a variety of reasons.

For just £15 +VAT each (or buy 10 and get one free) you can set up your Domain Watcher, and we will track your domain for a whole year and secure it for you when it becomes available. Watch .com, .net, .org, .co.uk, .me.uk or .org.uk domain names! You will only need to pay the registration fee (at our regular, competitive rates) if you successfully obtain the domain you are tracking.

To me it emplies that they 'will' secure the domain for you as soon as it expires - don't you think?

Also, as it was only a .co.uk domain and every other TLD is available, it would appear that something not quite above board is happening somewhere....

[jont]

Yep - I would copy the terms to them highlighting the "have them registered as soon as they expire" and ask for a full refund.... they may try and get out on the .co.uk front or claim that it is not actually available if someone else beat them to the jump.. either way it is very misleading.

[kathynewman]

Just had another email offering us the domain for $650. I had replied yesterday saying $750 was too much and that we would have to leave the domain with them.

I've emailed back today saying thank you but the most we could afford is $100 - which is true - so will wait and see if we get another reply

Watch this space

Kathy

[party_pete]

Just a bit of good news for me on this.

The Domain Name that I wanted was snapped up by a Bulk Domain Buyer based in Israel, called Hi Res

I found their contact details via the WHOIS database and aksed if they wished to sell.

$80 quoted and within 10 days the domain name is now mine, having just had an email from Nominet this morning.

Just thought i'd share this in case anyone else loses a domain to Hi Res and thought that it wouldn't be worth persuing.

[kathynewman]

Well there I was at about 7.30pm on Friday evening sat in office browing web for a new car when the office phone rang - my reaction was along the lines of who the heck thinks i'm going to answer a work call at this time on Friday and left answermachine to pick up. Listened to call and it was someone from Canada asking for me having read that I was having problems with a domain name that had been taken by another company. Ears pricked up at this so answered call.

This guy from Canada had same problem we've had with the local festival name - he forgot to renew and it has now been taken by wufunchina. He was so annoyed about this he did an internet search and must have found the actinic forum and contacted me having read of my problems. I explained all that I had gone through and that I so far hadn't got anywhere. This guy is in worst position as it's his business - he's been selling herbal products for 20 odd years and now has no domain name.

Saturday morning got another email from wufan - my last email to them had been kindly refusing their offer of $650 for the domain name back and explained $100 was most we could afford - they this time offered $550 - emailed back and said thank you so much but can only afford $100 - watch this space!

Kathy

We got talking about our businesses - I explained I also ran an online store - turns out he has some products suitable for use on pets - and is looking for someone in the UK to sell them - so he's sending me some samples.

So neither of us are anywhere near getting domains back but who knows he may have found a UK distributor for his products and we might have found a new product to sell - strange how things happen

[bangers]

Not mainy people know but if you have owned a domain and have a record of trading on it you may well have a case to make a claim against squatters.

I had a case again with Network Solutions when they sold a domain without contacting me. It got very messy.

Here a few steps:
1. Check out who's the new domain owner, if in the uk a small claims court route could be an option to let owners know you mean business (last option)
1. Try to keep it friendly and don't sound desperate.
2. If you get no joy with the new domain owner conatct their ISP.
3. Here the important stuff! You could try the WIPO (or World Intellectual Propery Organisation) who deal with matters cocerning the domain desputes etc and have powers to force ISP's to remove content or transfer domains.
See if you are covered under some of the rules laid out here http://www.wipo.int/amc/en/domains/guide/index.html. Which could help for a domain dispute or http://www.wipo.int/amc/en/index.html for more general info.

In my case I didn't have a domain owners details and I was getting nowhere until I made it clear that if ISP didn't contact them and work on my behalf then I'd make the claim against them (though at $1500/claim I wasn't looking forward to it).

The threat should be enough and if it is your business going down the drain then $1500 is well worth it

Hope this helps someone,
Cheers
Bangers

[wfl]

We had a similar issue with a .co.uk domain that we wanted but that was owned buy a squatter.

He is a US citizen but has a Nominet account as a Private UK Individual! What is more he had registered it when he was 17!

Admittedly we did pay him very handsomely for it but it was important. However we did not pay him anything like he wanted. We explained to him and SEDO that we owned the UK trading name and corporate identities and were in the process of registering the trade mark. Finally we made it very clear that anyone attempting to trade in the UK using the name would be talking to the legal beagles in double quick time. It was amazing how quickly we then reached a deal.

My biggest gripe was with Nominet (with whom I am now incidentally a member) for letting him become a member in the first place.

[kathynewman]

Got an email this morning from someone else who's had similar problems with same company (again they found via this forum!) and they pointed me to interesting article

http://domainsmagazine.com/Domains_1/Domain_5479.shtml

Kathy

[george]

Slightly similarish issue.

I ordered and paid for a new domain name a couple of weeks ago. A day or so later I queried why it wasn't redirected as I'd adjusted in the control panel. Turns out someone had registered it just before me. Fair enough you think, no real harm done... until I get an email today offering the same said domain name for sale (at an erm, slightly higher price of course) ... an inside job perhaps?

[Darren B]

George

is this a co.uk domain name? if so i would report it to nominet

[george]

George

is this a co.uk domain name? if so i would report it to nominet

Its a dot com Dazz. I'll do a bit of homework on the company later and see if I can dig anything dodgy up. I'm not tooo bothered about the name but hey, its the principle innt?

The Goat Club have been informed.