Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with icann

Do I own this domain name?

pkreutzer — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 09:59:55 -0800

I renewed two domain names with Registerfly on January 28, 2006 and never received renewal notices. Their system has been so screwed up that I've had to make multiple requests for renewals. In early February I received a notice from Enom that they were no longer registering names for Registerfly and offering to transfer my names from Registerfly to Enom, an offer I accepted. The other day I signed into my Enom account and discovered that the two names had expired. One name they said I could renew now for $9.95, but the other they said would cost me $160! These were both normal .com registrations. I contacted my account guy and he said he thought they could work something out. Then I got an email from his boss saying it would cost me $50 and I would have to email all sorts of documentation showing that I had tried to renew the domain, documentation I don't have. But, the WHOIS registry is in my name, with my contact information and says it doesn't expire until January 2008.

Before I call ENOM I'd really like to know where I stand, but I can't find anything that addresses this situation. Thanks.

Mater of our own domain names?

ph00dz — Mon, 23 Oct 2006 06:03:29 -0800

Becoming your own domain registrar? I work for a hosting company which registers around 300 domains for customers each week. We've got DNS, web servers, and all the basic stuff sorted out and humming along nicely, but still rely on an outside vendor to do our domain registration.

Since even saving a buck or two per domain can create substantial savings over time, we'd love to cut out the middle man. We'd also like a little more control over the process as well, since these days, any kind of substantial delay between a customer domain search and the aquisition of a domain can lead to it getting grabbed by an evil registrar.

If we were just looking for speed, there are other alternatives -- several of the domain registrars provide XML api's, which we could (and do) deal with no problem, but if it's not that big of a deal to go one step further... we're a bunch of linux dorks and I think we can probably sort it out. I'm just trying to figure out if it's worth our time.

I've found a basic page about accreditation from ICANN, but it doesn't really answer all my questions.

What's the base price of a domain from ICANN? GoDaddy claims it's only $0.25 per year... but I couldn't find any other references or breakdown per top level domain.

Has anyone out there set something like this up? How are the technical requirements? Was it difficult to get it all working with ICANN, or was it all reasonably straightforward?

Yeah SmallCompany, you go and threaten the yearly charity fundraiser. Jerks.

twiggy — Mon, 21 Aug 2006 17:51:34 -0800

I've received a phone call, but not a cease and desist (yet) on a domain name I own. There's lots Yes, I found a previous AskMe but it doesn't answer my question and didn't have a follow up / resolution.

Abridged version: Guy has trademark on words that match my domain name, I had domain registered before trademark was official. Do I need to hire a lawyer if I want to keep it?

It's really worth reading the rest though:

So I own a domain name. It's a few common words strung together, and was thought up entirely independently. In fact, I was somewhat surprised it wasn't taken. It's currently being used for a noncommercial purpose (a yearly charity fundraiser, actually).

Today, I came in to work to hear a voicemail, left on my direct line at work, from someone asking to talk to me about "my website". It should be noted that my direct line at work is not published anywhere (that I'm aware of), and that a valid number is available in the whois for the domain as well as on my own website (which is linked 2 clicks away from the website in question!).

As it turns out, this guy owns a trademark on the string of words that matches my domain. He filed for this trademark before I registered this domain, but the trademark was not approved until several months after I registered this domain.

I called him back at the number left on the voicemail, and he sounded nice enough at first, until he got to the "I'd just like to get the domain from you now, rather than have to take you to court", which rubbed me the wrong way especially given his tone of voice.

I politely responded "I think based on my knowledge of trademark law that I'm not actually obligated to give this domain up", to which he responded that I am being unethical, and that perhaps he should call my employer.

Notes:
- As it turns out by complete coincidence, this person has done business with the gargantuan behemoth company that is my employer. Perhaps this is how he dug up my name.
- I might have been willing to part with the domain had he not rubbed me the wrong way with his two distinct threats. Now, as a matter of principle, I feel like holding on to it.
- I do not sell any product at the website which this domain displays, nor do I compete in any way shape or form with his "business".
- His trademark is a "Name Mark" for a product his business sells, not for the business itself.
- I have not offered to sell him the domain name for any given price - I know this is viewed as "bad faith"
- Based on my own readings of the ICANN dispute policy, I believe I have airtight ownership of the domain. Points 4.a.ii, 4.a.iii (applicable disputes) do not apply in this case. points 4.b.i, 4.b.ii, 4.b.iii, 4.b.iv all do not apply (bad faith use). Points 4.c.i, 4.c.iii (my rights/legitimate interest) do apply.

Also worth noting:
- Their company name .com is not even owned by them. They have the .net .. it seems the .com holder has a business of the same name, but does not own the trademark (the guy complaining to me does hold the trademark) .. still they own the domain name, which I think bodes well for me.
- They've bought the .net and .org of the domain name I own, but seem to not be content without the .com that I have.
- They claim their product has existed since 2002 in the market, but the domain wasn't taken when I registered it back in February 2005, and their trademark wasn't registered 'til much later in 2005.

So my main question is this: Can I go through one of these ICANN disputes without a lawyer, or do I have to lawyer up just to hold on to this domain name? I don't sell anything on this site, so I don't really want to pay for a lawyer at this point.

I'm also curious if there's any implications of harassment from his threats, or invasion of privacy, especially considering he avoided my publicly available and working phone number from the whois, and tracked down my private direct work phone number.

Registering a .nt domain?

electric_counterpoint — Fri, 19 Aug 2005 22:44:30 -0800

How can I register a domain name with an unusual top level? I'd like to register a domain name that ends with "nt." (The actual domain should be fairly evident, what can I say?) The obvious www.electriccounterpoint.com is taken, so rather than hyphenate (eww!), I was considering doing the "del.icio.us" thing and putting the site up at electriccounterpoi.nt. The ".nt" top level domain indicates neutral territory, which is made doubly cool by my interest in these sorts of things. Unfortunately, I can't find anyplace that will let me register such a site.

This site says that the .nt domain is not recognized by ICANN. As I understand it, though, ICANN doesn't really control the Internet, though, so what's the deal? Can I register my domain with some service? If so, am I at risk of it being snatched away by ICANN? Should I be afraid of registering with some fly-by-night service in case that's my only choice? I've never registered a domain name before, so I've got all the usual concerns on top of the .nt thing.

Anyway, is this worth pursuing?