squatting on a domain name...

[tami]

in 1997 or so, there was a free ad-sponsored domain name service that would entitle you to your own .com. at that time, i had a little aol.com homepage, and i got my domain to point to my personal page.

the domain name itself is extremely rare, and if you googled for it right now, you'd only find references to me (for those of you who know, it's my AIM screenname)

well, after that year was up, i gave up the domain name (since i did not want to pay for it and the free service was being discontinued), but i had not realized that by registering for the domain in the first place, i was basically putting the domain name on a list of "wanted domains." since then, my domain was registered by an individual whose registration expired recently, but not after he used the domain for a number of spam-related purposes.

i went to the domain recently and saw different content: the name.net search page (you know, that stupid generic page that has a number of search terms). i emailed support@name.net and asked them about possibly obtaining the domain name from them for a cost lower than the minimum requested price of $50 (since i said there's no profitability in the domain name as it is; it's just a personal name).

support responded by saying that a "customer of name.net" had registered the domain name, and the only way i'd be entitled to get it back is by making that $50 offer on the website. i did that to see what would happen, and within seconds, i got an email saying that the owner has come up with a counteroffer of $125.

being skeptical about this activity, i had a friend do the same under his full name but using another email address of mine. again, within seconds, i got a counteroffer: this time of $225.

i'm beginning to question the legitimacy of name.net and wonder if the company is doing anything illegal by squatting on this name. the "customer of name.net" claim is apparently completely false, since i highly doubt that on two different occasions, the guy was sitting at his computer to immediately make a counteroffer.

furthermore, why would the content be a search page? if the domain is being used for a purpose, it should be hosting normal content and not a generic website, correct?

at this point, i've concluded that name.net is just trying to profit off of a bidding war with me. is this illegal?

your thoughts are appreciated.

cliffs:
- had a free ad-sponsored domain when i was a kid, but dropped it when it cost money
- the domain, however, got on a list of "wanted domains"
- it was subsequently grabbed and some guy used it to send spam mail. there was never a webpage associated with it.
- recently, however, there was a website: a generic search page hosted by name.net
- this search page gave me the option to make an offer of $50 minimum to buy the domain
- i asked support@name.net if this was really necessary, and they said it was registered by one of their "customers", so i made the offer
- they counter-offered quickly thereafter with a price of $125. my friend did the same thing and was counteroffered with a price of $225.
- i firmly believe that name.net is trying to profit off of a bidding war and my suspicions are based on the fact that there is a generic search page there and that the "customer" is getting back to me so quickly with counteroffers.
- is this illegal?

update: (as to why i'm providing an update... dunno, maybe you're interested in seeing how this turns out)

so they emailed me today regarding my complaints. they said: "...for the time being, we will inform our customer that we will be removing the make an offer link from their website. If you have further questions or concerns, just let us know. We would be happy to provide further assistance."

i then looked at the website and the make an offer link was already gone :Q

the "customer" is pretty damn fast.

i responded by explaining that i know that their customer claim is bull (reiterating several points in the previous email to them, points they didn't understand) and requested the phone number of their legal department. my goal? i'm not sure. however, i want to try scare tactics.

update #2:

they obviously were frightened by the prospect of being approached by my lawyer friend, and the domain is now mine! w00t!

 

[DeviousTrap]

It's your choice whether you want to buy the domain and it's the owners choice to decide what price he wants to sell it at. They can use whatever excuse they want as the reason to justify the price, the authenticity of their "excuse" doesn't really matter. If you don't want to pay the price then don't buy it.

Also, with all of the domain squatting places, the more people request a price, the higher they will raise their asking price to. In my opinion $50 is fairly reasonable to take a domain name away from those squatters, even $100. There are many times that they will ask for $3-5K for a domain that doesn't mean anything.

 

[shilala]

:camera:'s?

 

[DBL]

Also consider that he most likely never received any interest in the domain name, so that its obvious that both recent emails expressing interest are coming from the same interested party despite different email and contact info.

I think he is within his rights to squat so long as he did not buy the domain with the intention of trying to extort from an actual company. For instance, had you actively been running a business or possibly even a blog and you let the domain lapse accidentally, he would not be allowed to buy it and hold it for ransom. Well, he could but he would probably lose in court. That's also why squatters mostly lost who bought domains from well-known companies with the intention of extorting millions of $$$.

 

[SarcasticDwarf]

You will quickly learn that most *good* domain names are taken. A large percentage of these are taken by squatters. You will rarely get away with paying anything less than $100, and usually a couple grand.

 

[tami]

Originally posted by: SarcasticDwarf
You will quickly learn that most *good* domain names are taken. A large percentage of these are taken by squatters. You will rarely get away with paying anything less than $100, and usually a couple grand.

the point is, it's not a *good* domain name. if you google the name, you come up with 2 pages of results and they're all about me (except the few pages that cite the domain as having been blacklisted due to sending spam).

he (or rather, the company name.net) has no purpose for keeping it, except to try to profit. in the end, i'm not going to buy from him, so it will just idle in his possession. that's the only disturbing thing about it.

 

[AgaBoogaBoo]

Agreed with those earlier, if it's a domain you want then $50 and even $100 is actually a decent price.

 

[NikPreviousAcct]

Originally posted by: tami

Originally posted by: SarcasticDwarf
You will quickly learn that most *good* domain names are taken. A large percentage of these are taken by squatters. You will rarely get away with paying anything less than $100, and usually a couple grand.

the point is, it's not a *good* domain name. if you google the name, you come up with 2 pages of results and they're all about me (except the few pages that cite the domain as having been blacklisted due to sending spam).

he (or rather, the company name.net) has no purpose for keeping it, except to try to profit. in the end, i'm not going to buy from him, so it will just idle in his possession. that's the only disturbing thing about it.

I thought squatting on an unused domain was illegal, though.

 

[robothouse77]

Originally posted by: shilala
:camera:'s?

lol

 

[tami]

Originally posted by: AgaBoogaBoo
Agreed with those earlier, if it's a domain you want then $50 and even $100 is actually a decent price.

i'd have probably gone for it at $50, but the fact that they are trying to make me pay a higher price is extortion imo. i'm not going to accept the bidding war that they're trying to have going on, so they can just let it sit and idle for all i care.

 

[SarcasticDwarf]

Originally posted by: tami

Originally posted by: SarcasticDwarf
You will quickly learn that most *good* domain names are taken. A large percentage of these are taken by squatters. You will rarely get away with paying anything less than $100, and usually a couple grand.

the point is, it's not a *good* domain name. if you google the name, you come up with 2 pages of results and they're all about me (except the few pages that cite the domain as having been blacklisted due to sending spam).

he (or rather, the company name.net) has no purpose for keeping it, except to try to profit. in the end, i'm not going to buy from him, so it will just idle in his possession. that's the only disturbing thing about it.

A large percentage of the crappy domains out there are being squatted on too. The fact is, it is a huge problem on the net, and one that isn't going to be solved. I have a couple of random domains that I let expire because I knew I wouldn't do anything with them. They are 100% worthless and yet someone purchased them.

 

[tami]

Originally posted by: SarcasticDwarf

Originally posted by: tami

Originally posted by: SarcasticDwarf
You will quickly learn that most *good* domain names are taken. A large percentage of these are taken by squatters. You will rarely get away with paying anything less than $100, and usually a couple grand.

the point is, it's not a *good* domain name. if you google the name, you come up with 2 pages of results and they're all about me (except the few pages that cite the domain as having been blacklisted due to sending spam).

he (or rather, the company name.net) has no purpose for keeping it, except to try to profit. in the end, i'm not going to buy from him, so it will just idle in his possession. that's the only disturbing thing about it.

A large percentage of the crappy domains out there are being squatted on too. The fact is, it is a huge problem on the net, and one that isn't going to be solved. I have a couple of random domains that I let expire because I knew I wouldn't do anything with them. They are 100% worthless and yet someone purchased them.

...probably to squat on them till you express interest in them again (or so they hope).

that's what i think is going on. i think it's wrong. i wonder if i can lobby a congressman to fix this problem.

(no, seriously.)

 

[Analog]

SARCASTICDWARF.COM is already taken. (click here for info)
Backorder SARCASTICDWARF.COM - just $18.95
If this name expires or is cancelled by the registrant we'll try to grab it the instant it becomes available. More

Damn!

 

[SarcasticDwarf]

Originally posted by: yellowfiero
SARCASTICDWARF.COM is already taken. (click here for info)
Backorder SARCASTICDWARF.COM - just $18.95
If this name expires or is cancelled by the registrant we'll try to grab it the instant it becomes available. More

Damn!

Actually, I let that one expire. You can grab it when it opens up.

 

[Analog]

Originally posted by: SarcasticDwarf

Originally posted by: yellowfiero
SARCASTICDWARF.COM is already taken. (click here for info)
Backorder SARCASTICDWARF.COM - just $18.95
If this name expires or is cancelled by the registrant we'll try to grab it the instant it becomes available. More

Damn!

Actually, I let that one expire. You can grab it when it opens up.

hehehe - wait for someone to give you $50 for it!

 

[BriGy86]

i don't see anything wrong with it, as long as this guy pays his money, he should be able to do what he sees fit with it... even if what he chooses to do is absolutly nothing

am i wrong?

 

[SarcasticDwarf]

Originally posted by: BriGy86
i don't see anything wrong with it, as long as this guy pays his money, he should be able to do what he sees fit with it... even if what he chooses to do is absolutly nothing

am i wrong?

In theiry there is nothing wrong with it. The problem is that it increases the costs of doing business on the net, which therefore reduces the creativity and diversity of websites over time.

A parallel example of this is the real estate market in Tuscon, AZ. Everyone knows which direction expansion is moving. People then buy the land (speculation) in order to sell it a couple years later for a very, very large profit. Again, at the surface this just sounds like a few people making money. The problem is that it leads to a few things. First, housing prices are greatly inflated. As this inflation is many times the inflation rate (and increase in wages), this results in a greater percentage of a person's paycheck going to their house. This directly impacts the economy.

 

[Analog]

Originally posted by: SarcasticDwarf

Originally posted by: BriGy86
i don't see anything wrong with it, as long as this guy pays his money, he should be able to do what he sees fit with it... even if what he chooses to do is absolutly nothing

am i wrong?

In theiry there is nothing wrong with it. The problem is that it increases the costs of doing business on the net, which therefore reduces the creativity and diversity of websites over time.

A parallel example of this is the real estate market in Tuscon, AZ. Everyone knows which direction expansion is moving. People then buy the land (speculation) in order to sell it a couple years later for a very, very large profit. Again, at the surface this just sounds like a few people making money. The problem is that it leads to a few things. First, housing prices are greatly inflated. As this inflation is many times the inflation rate (and increase in wages), this results in a greater percentage of a person's paycheck going to their house. This directly impacts the economy.

this is supply and demand. people don't have to buy it at that price, and then the prices will fall.

 

[SarcasticDwarf]

Originally posted by: yellowfiero

Originally posted by: SarcasticDwarf

Originally posted by: BriGy86
i don't see anything wrong with it, as long as this guy pays his money, he should be able to do what he sees fit with it... even if what he chooses to do is absolutly nothing

am i wrong?

In theiry there is nothing wrong with it. The problem is that it increases the costs of doing business on the net, which therefore reduces the creativity and diversity of websites over time.

A parallel example of this is the real estate market in Tuscon, AZ. Everyone knows which direction expansion is moving. People then buy the land (speculation) in order to sell it a couple years later for a very, very large profit. Again, at the surface this just sounds like a few people making money. The problem is that it leads to a few things. First, housing prices are greatly inflated. As this inflation is many times the inflation rate (and increase in wages), this results in a greater percentage of a person's paycheck going to their house. This directly impacts the economy.

this is supply and demand. people don't have to buy it at that price, and then the prices will fall.

Absolutely true...in a sense. Unfortunately, people NEED a place to live (and apartments have very severe disadvantages). On the web, there is a finite number of domain names. In order for a business to succeed, it generally needs a good sounding domain. An acronym can also work, but most of those are also taken (anything 5 digits or less is difficult). This means that regardless of price, demand can never reach 0.

 

[mugs]

Originally posted by: tami

Originally posted by: AgaBoogaBoo
Agreed with those earlier, if it's a domain you want then $50 and even $100 is actually a decent price.

i'd have probably gone for it at $50, but the fact that they are trying to make me pay a higher price is extortion imo. i'm not going to accept the bidding war that they're trying to have going on, so they can just let it sit and idle for all i care.

E-mail back and tell them $50 is your final offer. When they realize the other interested party is no longer interested and e-mail you back to accept your offer, counter-offer with $20.

 

[NikPreviousAcct]

Originally posted by: mugs

Originally posted by: tami

Originally posted by: AgaBoogaBoo
Agreed with those earlier, if it's a domain you want then $50 and even $100 is actually a decent price.

i'd have probably gone for it at $50, but the fact that they are trying to make me pay a higher price is extortion imo. i'm not going to accept the bidding war that they're trying to have going on, so they can just let it sit and idle for all i care.

E-mail back and tell them $50 is your final offer. When they realize the other interested party is no longer interested and e-mail you back to accept your offer, counter-offer with $20.

You can't put it in writing that $50 is your final offer, then go back on that offer when they accept

 

[BriGy86]

Originally posted by: SarcasticDwarf

Originally posted by: yellowfiero

Originally posted by: SarcasticDwarf

Originally posted by: BriGy86
i don't see anything wrong with it, as long as this guy pays his money, he should be able to do what he sees fit with it... even if what he chooses to do is absolutly nothing

am i wrong?

In theiry there is nothing wrong with it. The problem is that it increases the costs of doing business on the net, which therefore reduces the creativity and diversity of websites over time.

A parallel example of this is the real estate market in Tuscon, AZ. Everyone knows which direction expansion is moving. People then buy the land (speculation) in order to sell it a couple years later for a very, very large profit. Again, at the surface this just sounds like a few people making money. The problem is that it leads to a few things. First, housing prices are greatly inflated. As this inflation is many times the inflation rate (and increase in wages), this results in a greater percentage of a person's paycheck going to their house. This directly impacts the economy.

this is supply and demand. people don't have to buy it at that price, and then the prices will fall.

Absolutely true...in a sense. Unfortunately, people NEED a place to live (and apartments have very severe disadvantages). On the web, there is a finite number of domain names. In order for a business to succeed, it generally needs a good sounding domain. An acronym can also work, but most of those are also taken (anything 5 digits or less is difficult). This means that regardless of price, demand can never reach 0.

couldn't this also be very well compared to the stock market?

buy low sell high, thats the basic idea in both examples

 

[Analog]

of course they're trying to make a buck. Now that you artificially bid it up, they think they got someone.

 

[tami]

Originally posted by: mugs

Originally posted by: tami

Originally posted by: AgaBoogaBoo
Agreed with those earlier, if it's a domain you want then $50 and even $100 is actually a decent price.

i'd have probably gone for it at $50, but the fact that they are trying to make me pay a higher price is extortion imo. i'm not going to accept the bidding war that they're trying to have going on, so they can just let it sit and idle for all i care.

E-mail back and tell them $50 is your final offer. When they realize the other interested party is no longer interested and e-mail you back to accept your offer, counter-offer with $20.

the unfortunate thing is that it's being done over the web through some system that doesn't really give me many options to proceed.

i'm just going to deal with their support directly. i'm not going through their automatically-generated counteroffer emails.

yellowfiero: i emailed them and told them it was done by me. they can think all they want; both emails are mine.

 

[SarcasticDwarf]

Originally posted by: BriGy86

Originally posted by: SarcasticDwarf

Originally posted by: yellowfiero

Originally posted by: SarcasticDwarf

Originally posted by: BriGy86
i don't see anything wrong with it, as long as this guy pays his money, he should be able to do what he sees fit with it... even if what he chooses to do is absolutly nothing

am i wrong?

In theiry there is nothing wrong with it. The problem is that it increases the costs of doing business on the net, which therefore reduces the creativity and diversity of websites over time.

A parallel example of this is the real estate market in Tuscon, AZ. Everyone knows which direction expansion is moving. People then buy the land (speculation) in order to sell it a couple years later for a very, very large profit. Again, at the surface this just sounds like a few people making money. The problem is that it leads to a few things. First, housing prices are greatly inflated. As this inflation is many times the inflation rate (and increase in wages), this results in a greater percentage of a person's paycheck going to their house. This directly impacts the economy.

this is supply and demand. people don't have to buy it at that price, and then the prices will fall.

Absolutely true...in a sense. Unfortunately, people NEED a place to live (and apartments have very severe disadvantages). On the web, there is a finite number of domain names. In order for a business to succeed, it generally needs a good sounding domain. An acronym can also work, but most of those are also taken (anything 5 digits or less is difficult). This means that regardless of price, demand can never reach 0.

couldn't this also be very well compared to the stock market?
buy low sell high, thats the basic idea in both examples

Not really. Purchasing stock is 100% optional. A person can go through their entire lives without ever even considering a stock purchase. A business doesn't need to own stock either (though I believe some do). Unfortunately, a business needs to own a domain name if they want to compete.