Free dot info

Free dot info is now for sale.

All inquiries can be directed to Sedo.com or email whois@dr.com

ICANN needs to set rules for change of ownerships!

Why is it that some registrars can offer an automated change of ownership at no cost and then you have some registrars that are still living in the 90s. My recent run in with a deadbeat registrar is with Domainz.net.nz. Their standard change of ownership requires a 2 page form to be filled out by both the buyer and seller, then faxed back to them, a fee of $35 is assessed then it will take 2-5 days for the domain name to get into your account. I paid for the express option which warrants a $75 charge and up to 24 hours (business hours) for the domain to be in my account.

So I printed, scanned, emailed the docs to the seller on Friday (NZ time), they filled them out and faxed them to Domainz right at the close of business on Friday, so then comes Mon (NZ time), I call and they say it will get done today (Mon their time), and would you know it, at 1pm here it will be 8 am tuesday there and still no word. This is ludacris!

With todays technology there should be no reason that internal pushes arent automatic and free of charge. Are there or will there ever be guidelines/rules stating how long it should take and how much they should charge?

ALL INPUT IS APPRECIATED!

Domain names in Indian languages soon

NEW DELHI: India is all set to join the global bandwagon of local language domain names. Soon you will be able to own domain names in Hindi, Tamil, Sanskrit, Bengali, Punjabi and some other Indian languages.

For trademark owners, the initial registration (called the sunrise period) is expected to open in January 2008. Registration for individual owners, that is, land rush, will begin around March, 2008.

Called IDNs (Internationalised Domain Names), these are popular in Europe (Russia, Germany) and Asia (Singapore, China, Japan, Korea). In some of these countries, IDNs registrations per month surpass those in English.

“It will be one of the most complex roll outs of IDNs in the world. Other countries have only one or two languages but we have about 22 languages in 11 scripts. We plan to offer IDNs in five to six languages in the first phase which will begin next year,” said National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI) additional CEO Rajesh Aggarwal. NIXI had earlier launched the .in domain which crossed 3 lakh registrations on Friday.

The IDNs, on the other hand, are in the test phase right now. The guidelines for roll out are being framed by the NIXI along with IT ministry, C-DAC and Internet Service Providers Association of India.

“The same letter may exist both in Tamil and Hindi. Also, within a language it can be represented visually through different set of Unicode characters. We are trying to make the IDNs phishing and spoofing proof,” Aggarwal added.

Currently, any letter in a Devanagiri, Gurmukhi or any other regional script font can be created visually using different codes.

Simply put, if Ram.com is created using one script, the same can be created visually by using a different set of codes. It may lead to a rise in phishing or spoofing of identities.

But NIXI is drafting a counter policy on the same. “To counter this, we will block alternate identities of the same name, which can be created by different codes, except the original identity for every user. We will have a scientific formula on how the visual representation of each character in the domain name will be made. Also, we will have a simple dispute resolution policy,” he adds.

Source

Someone might be stealing your domain name searches, says ICANN

The Security and Stability Advisory Committee (SSAC) of ICANN (the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) has launched a probe into the practice of what it calls domain name front running.

This is where a person checks if a desired domain name is available to register, then finds that it has been taken when they return shortly afterwards to register the name.

ICANN said that there are widespread suspicions that checks for availability are being monitored and the information used to register desired addresses in order to sell them back to the user at a profit.

"When the domain name of interest for which an availability check is made is registered shortly after such a check, the individuals making the availability check may reasonably assume that the organization operating the web site or service they used to determine the availability of the name pre-emptively registered the name," said the report by the SSAC.

It said that through there was not yet firm evidence of how or even if the practice was widespread, it had received complaints.

"Registrants have filed complaints with ICANN, registrars, and with intellectual property attorneys that suggest domain name front running incidents may have occurred," it said. "SSAC does not yet have any hard data to draw conclusions regarding the frequency (if any) of the occurrence of domain name front running."

The name 'front running' comes from the world of finance and refers to stock brokers buying or selling stock in a company after being instructed to take action by a client that will affect the price of shares. That name originally came from the wild west and referred to the purchase of soon-to-be-valuable land when acting on insider information.

People who want to buy a domain name usually check its availability first on websites such as whois.net, or through registrar companies. It is at that point that unscrupulous operators may be registering names in order to profit from the demand for them.

The security committee has listed a number of plausible methods that could be in operation stealing domain ideas. It said that there could be software installed on users' computers which relays domain queries secretly back to an operator, who then exploits that information.

Alternatively, it said that any website could host a whois application and abuse the information gathered.

The SACC report also said that companies operating DNS systems or even registrars and registries themselves could be abusing the query information they receive, or could have staff who do so.

The report said that it is unclear which, if any, of these methods are being used. It said that there could be other explanations for users' finding that checked domains were suddenly registered.

"Alternative explanations have also been suggested. Apparent instances of domain name front running may be mere coincidence or a consequence of domain name tasting," said the report. "In any given month, over a million domain names can be tested for their potential to be profitable for monetization, and there is a reasonable chance that some of these names may coincide with names that have been subject to some form of a domain name availability check during that month."

The report calls for information about and evidence of domain front running from users and companies, and suggests that the internet community formulate a policy of acceptable practices in relation to domain registration to avoid tarnishing the internet and domain industry's reputations.

Source

Internet domain name "insider trading" investigated

The Internet's main oversight agency is looking into allegations that insider information is being used to purchase the domain names before they're registered by an individual or business.


The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers says they will be investigating suspicions that someone who has access to domain name search requests has been using the query information to gauge interest in those addresses and profit from it.


ICANN's Security and Stability Advisory Committee, "observes that there does not appear to be a strong set of standards and practices to conclude whether monitoring availability checks is an acceptable or unacceptable practice"

So far, no one has been accused or charged with "domain name front running" but the agency said it wants to prevent "perception from evolving to accepted wisdom."

Source

Dot.Asia domain names!

"Asia has developed into a global force on the international commercial, political and cultural network. The .Asia domain aspires to embrace this dynamism in the Asia Century to become a nucleus, intersection and breeding ground for Internet activity and development in the region." (The DotAsia Organization)

In December of 2006, ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) approved the creation of a new Top Level Generic Domain, ".Asia". DotAsia organization (www.dotasia.org) is responsible for .Asia domains.

On October 9, 2007, Sunrise Registration of the ".Asia" domain began and Sunrise 2 will start on November 13. .Asia domains will come alive and be a functional domain in March 2008.

Although the introduction of .Asia domains highlights the commercial, political and cultural features of Asia region, .Asia domain, according to ICANN's definition of the Asia/Asia-Pacific region, has no political or geographical meaning.

Also, all Middle East countries that are similar and could have a specific IDN (multilingual) domain name have been included in .Asia, too.

.Asia comes after the surge in IDN registrations in Asia, and I expected an IDN domain registry. Unfortunately, .Asia domain names are pure ASCII and an IDN domain registry for .Asia is a second thought and planned for the future.

It is not clear what companies will think of .Asia domain names. There are already lots of country code-generic domains in Asia and most companies and business units active in the region prefer to use the country code than the .Asia domain.

There are different languages and cultures in Asia and IDN domain names like .jp or .cn are stronger as people know what language and script they can expect to end up in. The potential customers of .Asia domains are Governments, trademark/servicemark holders, and some companies which have a branch for the Asia region.

The success of .Asia domains in their current form is not predictable, but if it's going to be anything like .EU or .Travel or .Jobs, then its future is not so bright! Landrush (scheduled for February 2008) is when registration of the .Asia domain is open to the public and I am sure there will be a landrush of people registering .Asia domains.

A pioneer domain program will allow people with genuinely good business plans and ideas to avoid the stress of a landrush when attempting to register a premium .Asia domain such as "book.asia", "music.asia" and similar quality names. The program allows people to submit their ideas, business plan, executive plan and marketing strategy for a specific .Asia domain. The best proposal wins the right to operate the best .Asia domains. You can read more about this program at pioneers.domains.asia!

Source

How Domain Names Play a Role in SEO & SEM

How Domain Names Play a Role in SEO & SEM

By: Aaron Wall
2007-10-29


Many marketing and advertising costs are recurring. Re-registering domain names is a minimal cost, but many domains (especially .com names) get type in traffic...
worth thousands of dollars a year. Many marketing and advertising costs are recurring. Re-registering domain names is a minimal cost, but many domains (especially .com names) get type in traffic worth thousands of dollars a year. Some get type in traffic worth thousands per day. And this traffic stream is defensible from search engine algorithmic swings.

In addition to the defensibility issue, there is a large synergy between great domain names and SEO. Domain names containing your keywords as part of the name make it easier to get your keywords in the anchor text when people reference your company by its official name. This is true even if the domain has hyphens and/or additional words. But domains with hyphens in them are harder to market than domains without hyphens.

Exact match domains make people more likely to give you targeted anchor text when they mention your website. In some cases a strong domain name also makes a site appear more trustworthy and linkworthy.

Exact match domains are given an algorithmic relevancy boost in Google, even if a domain name shows little other criteria that prove it trustworthy.

Exact match domains make it easier to get Google Sitelinks to expand your listing and block out competing sites.

Exact match domains are easier to profit from search engine arbitrage.

Source

INTERNET LAW - DOMAIN NAME REGISTRATION IN GERMANY

The registry for the .de domain is administered by DENIC in Germany. The Domain Name Contract with DENIC can be concluded once the registration guidelines and general terms and condition laid down by DENIC are fulfilled. The contents of these provisions describe the rights and obligations of the Registry and the Registrant with respect to registration and all issues in relation to Domain Name. There is no restriction on the number of domain names that a single entity or person can register. This article answers the following questions: What characters are permitted for domain name registration under .de in Germany? What duties lie on the Domain Holder at the time of registration? What conditions lead to termination of the domain Contract by the DENIC? What is a DISPUTE entry? What material must be stipulated in an application to dispute entry?
DENIC was established in December 1996 and founded by German Internet Providers. Both German and non-German residents or institutions may register a site using the .de domain name. However, if the registrant is not located in Germany, an administrative contact person must be appointed who is a resident in Germany and must serve as the registrant’s representative for receiving the service of official documents pertaining to the domain name. Parties may register for a domain name either through a Registrar or directly through DENIC.

Before applying for domain name a search by WHOIS Database can be carried out for the availability. The .de domain names are registered for a period of 1 to 10 years subject to renewal and the payment of term fees. German domain name registration is available on a first come first served principle. Also, a registrant may divide its domain name into sub domains. However, such sub-domains are not registered by DENIC, but have to be set up by domain holder or his/her provider.


DENIC registries do not use The Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) established by ICANN for settling disputes about domain names.





What characters are permitted for domain name registration under .de in Germany?

The character permitted for .de domain name registration are character 0-9, the 26 letters of the Latin alphabet, hyphens, and other letters listed in the Annex of the DENIC Domain Guidelines. However, such non-numeric or non-letter characters cannot appear as first or last characters of the domain name, nor is it possible for both third and fourth places to be hyphens at the same time. No distinction is made between capital and small letters. The minimum length of a .de domain is three characters and the maximum length is 63 characters. If the domain includes letters from the Annex, the maximum length is determined by its ACE version in accordance with RFC3490 (Request for Comments).


What duties lie on the Domain Holder at the time of registration?

According to the DENIC terms and conditions, the domain name holder must have the following obligations at the time of registering:

• The Domain Holder must give an assurance that the data or information pertaining to holder contained in application for registering the domain is accurate and that the registrant is entitled to register and/or use the domain.

• The registration and use of the domain name does not infringe any person rights nor break any law.


• If the domain name holder is not resident of Germany, in such case the Administrative Contact shall be appointed by Domain holder which is authorized representative for receiving the service of official or court documents.


The Domain holder must ensure that all the necessary technical conditions for the domain’s connectivity are fulfilled. These duties include but are not limited to carrying out a WHOIS query immediately after registration, checking the data published in Survey and informing DENIC immediately of any required corrections to the data as published as well as any subsequent modifications of such data.



What conditions lead to termination of the domain Contract by the DENIC?

Under DENIC terms and conditions, the DENIC has the right to terminate the Domain Contract on substantial grounds without giving any notice beforehand to the holder if,
1. Data communicated by DENIC or the Administrative Contact submitted to the domain holder is incorrect or irrelevant;

2. A Domain Holder, that has abandoned its domicile in Germany or is a non-German resident fails to appoint an Administrative Contract domiciled in Germany even after receiving a formal warning with deadline for compliance;

3. The domain itself includes a manifest illegal statement;

4. The Domain holder has persistently breached substantial duties after receiving a formal warning for compliance;

5. When the registration is confirmed and the Domain holder does not create the necessary technical conditions for the domain's connectivity with a period of four weeks, the Domain Contract is automatically terminated;

6. In a final judgment on the case, it has been determined that the registration of the domain for the Domain holder has infringed the rights of others.



What is a DISPUTE entry?

According to DENIC guidelines, DENIC may place a Dispute Entry on the domain if a third party presents a case to show their right to the domain and taken steps to enforce this right against the Domain Holder. The Dispute Entry remains in effect for one year, but can be extended by DENIC, provided that the holder submits evidence that dispute has not been resolved.


What material must be stipulated in an application to dispute entry?

The application must be placed on a signed application form which confirms that the applicant has already started the process of resolving the dispute with the domain holder or that he intend to do so in the near future. The application must enclose documentary evidence showing the reasonable grounds for claim.

Source

10,000 .eu names suspended amid cybersquatter allegation

The organisation behind the .eu domain has suspended 10,000 domain names registered by a Chinese woman whom it accuses of being a cybersquatter. The woman, in retaliation, has filed a lawsuit in Belgium.

EURid, the Belgium-based registry for .eu domain names, has blocked the names and has the right to strip the woman, Zheng Qingyin, of the names. EURid legal manager, Herman Sobrie, told OUT-LAW, though, that the organisation wanted to have a court strip Qingyin of the addresses. He said that case would take about a year.

Qingyin has filed a separate suit objecting to the blocking of the domains in the Court of First Instance in Brussels. This is a fast-track case whose result should be known in a month, Sobrie said.

"This Chinese woman has registered over 10,000 names, she is without doubt cybersquatting," said Sobrie. "We know she sells these names to people for serious prices. This is a phenomenon we don't like at all, but there is nothing illegal about this."

EURid cannot take action against someone for cybersquatting; that can only be done by someone else who claims rights to a domain name. But Sobrie said that EURid had received complaints about the woman and had investigated further.

"We as register can just stand there and look at it except in one situation, which is that maybe this registrant is not eligible to have a .eu domain," said Sobrie. Only people or organisations that are based in the European Union are entitled to hold .eu addresses.

"We started asking for more information about her domicile. She said she was domiciled in London. At first we took that for granted, but we had indications that that was probably not true," he said. "We have serious doubts about the eligibility of that lady and at a certain point we thought we had enough reason to say that she wasn't eligible. Under the circumstances we preferred to sue in a Belgian court and have the names revoked by the court rather than do it ourselves and be sued."

Sobrie would not detail the basis of EURid's suspicions ahead of the court case. He did say that he was sure that the woman was cybersquatting.

"When we screen our data bank we see that some people have an amazing amount of names. Nobody needs 10,000 names," he said. "We had a lot of complaints from people complaining to us that they were contacted or they contacted the holder, who said 'make an offer and we'll sell it'. We know the prices were between €500 and €1500."

Last year EURid suspended more than 74,000 domain names and sued 400 registrars for registering the names with a view to re-selling them, in breach of the contract between registrars and the registry.

Source

Fraudster Who Impersonated a Lawyer to Steal Domain Names Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud

A Nevada man pleaded guilty Thursday to his plotting to steal URLs from their legitimate owners by impersonating a California intellectual property lawyer and send threatening letters to domain name owners in hopes of convincing them to turn over the domains to him.

Las Vegas resident David Scali registered the email address trademarkinfringement@netzero.net in 2006 and then, pretending to be a real Califonia lawyer (whose intials are K.Y.C.), threatened domain name owners with $100,000 trademark infringement suits, unless they transferred the domains within 48 hours.

Scali pleaded guilty to a single wire fraud charge in a Los Angeles federal court in regards to one case where a victim turned over a domain name similar to citysearch.com. Scali intended to use the domains to make money, most likely by putting ads on the sites to show to visitors who got to the site by mistyping a domain name (domain squatting).

While wire fraud charges carry a maximum of 20 years in the pokey, Scali's plea bargain calls for the government to ask for a sentence of probation to six months. Scali will also face fines and will have his computer usage monitored during probation.

Moral of the story: On the Internet, nobody knows you're a dog (or lolcat)-- but they might suspect you're not the IP lawyer you say you are. I mean what high powered intellectual property lawyer would use a Netzero account?

Source

Free NDA / Domain name sales agreement

Please click on the link to my shared folder for a free NDA and domain name sales agreement!

http://www.box.net/shared/chx3v0usm1


Enjoy!

The Perfect Domain Name

We all know the Internet is an endless spring of community, entertainment, commerce and information. Unlike traditional mediums (print, TV, radio, brick and mortar businesses), the web promotes interaction by enabling everyone with a computer and a connection to cautiously dip their toes or cannonball full force into the world's biggest pool party. Encouraging that do-it-yourself spirit in each of us are an endless line of designers, programmers and hosts who are anxious to assist even the most technically timid to sprout wings with their own site. However, you'll never make it out of the nest if you don't have the perfect domain name for your site. And thus, the search begins.

Before wasting time by throwing darts at names on a wall, it's best to maintain focus and recognize a few naming parameters. First off, it's paramount that the domain name doesn't confuse potential visitors. Strive for a site name that sounds exactly like it's spelled so you don't need a search engine to find it. A quick trip to Alexa's Top 100 U.S. sites shows there are few exceptions to this rule. With most basic words already spoken for, be prepared to get creative, mixing words together or coming up with an appropriate onomatopoeia.

While it's a good idea for a domain name to describe the site, it's equally important to come up with an original name that is catchy enough to be passed along at the water cooler. Look no further than domain names Yahoo or Google. While these names really don't reveal much about two of the web's most visited sites, they're easy to recall and short on syllables, making it simple for first-timers to find.

If you're after serious traffic, commit to securing a “.com” name. It only takes a quick trip to Alexa to discourage any thoughts of settling for less popular “.org,” “.net” or “.info.” Of the Top 100 traffic-ranked sites in the United States, only 10 ended with something other than “.com.” At the end of the day, why argue with 90% of the country's most-visited sites.

Now that you're armed with these factors, head over to your favorite domain name registrar. Don't get too discouraged when you discover the fabulous names you've painstakingly researched are already spoken for. This is your opportunity to recruit family and friends to get involved by emailing them your naming guidelines. Don't be surprised if someone who isn't invested in the project suggests the perfect, available name.

The company I work for recently survived the re-naming process and we still have the bruises to show for it. Originally named RadioFire.net, we're a site that allows people to discover unsigned music artists in their own communities and across the country. With a complete redesign underway to amplify a more community-oriented experience, our design firm said the “.net” name had to go. The “.com” version of our domain name wasn't available, so we followed the steps above. After much brainstorming and research, we feel we've hit a home run that will elevate our site's experience. Curious? You'll have to stay tuned for the re-launch.

In the meantime, dive into your own website with a great domain name.

Source

He sells employer's domain name (Sofa.com), takes off with stripper

SHEBOYGAN -- A 41-year-old Sheboygan man was charged today with selling his employer’s domain name for $200,000 and using corporate credit cards to finance international trips with a stripper girlfriend, according to a complaint filed in Milwaukee County Circuit Court.


Stephen M. Galstad, of 429 St. Clair Ave., is accused of selling the sofa.com domain name owned by Dinesen’s Leather Only to a London-based firm without the company’s permission, the complaint said.

He faces up to five years in prison and $25,000 in fines on a felony charge of theft in a business setting. Galstad is in custody awaiting his initial court appearance Tuesday afternoon, officials said.

According to the complaint filed by Assistant District Attorney Bruce Landgraf:

Galstad worked out an agreement in October 2005 with London company Deliverance Pension Scheme to sell the Web address for $200,000. Records subpoenaed by investigators show the domain was transferred to the new owners in November 2005, and $200,000 was wired to Galstad’s personal account about two weeks later.

Galstad, who had worked for Dinesen’s for 16 years and managed the company’s stores, then transferred considerably more than $10,000 to two women, one from New York and one from Brazil. Neither woman was Galstad’s wife, whose divorce from him was finalized in June 2006.

The theft came to owner Lynn Dinesen’s attention when a friend told her the sofa.com address was no longer sending people to the company’s site. The address is operated by a London-based online furniture retailer, which according to its Web site launched in September 2006.

Meanwhile, investigators found Galstad has been using a corporate credit card to travel to Brazil, Canada, Las Vegas and New Jersey with a woman identified by his employer as a stripper from Las Vegas.

Landgraf said the use of corporate credit cards is being investigated, so the total amount stolen is unknown, but in one case his employer said he drained a credit card with a $15,000 limit.

Galstad was confronted by Dinesen and her lawyer in May 2006 and admitted to the thefts, saying he was like “a kid in a candy store” and that he “got greedy.” However, the incident was not reported to police until April 2007.

Landgraf said Galstad immediately repaid Dinesen $66,723 and claimed he gave some of the money to the business in spring of 2006. The claim is being investigated, though it wouldn’t change the criminal act of transferring the money to a personal account, Landgraf said.

Landgraf said the reason for the delay between Dinesen’s discovery and report to police may be related to ongoing business troubles, which have since led to the company declaring bankruptcy.

Harold Stein, an attorney representing Dinesen’s owner Lynn Dinesen, declined to comment without first conferring with Dinesen. No lawyer is listed for Galstad in online court records.

Galstad will be in Milwaukee County Circuit Court at 1 p.m. Tuesday.

Though Milwaukee Police Department detectives are investigating the credit card activity, Landgraf said additional charges are unlikely. Multiple thefts from a single victim are typically grouped into one charge, which in this case is the one already filed.

Source

World's Biggest Domain Name and Internet Traffic Conference Announces T.R.A.F.F.I.C. East 2007, October 9-13

PEMBROKE PINES, Fla., Sept. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- T.R.A.F.F.I.C., the domain industry's premier conference, today announced T.R.A.F.F.I.C. East 2007, October 9-13, 2007 at the Westin Diplomat hotel in Hollywood, Florida. Presented by the World Association of Domain Name Developers, Inc. (WADND), the conferences, held at three different locations annually, bring together domain owners, search engine companies, leading registrars, pay-per-click aggregators, sponsors, Wall Street investors, the financial and advertising communities as well as analysts and experts on targeted Internet traffic for stimulating discussions of strategies, best practices, trends and networking.

Undeniably, the domain channel has become a major marketing industry. According to Fabulous Research, $400 million in advertising dollars were spent via the domain channel in 2006. Major search engines rely on domain traffic for over 10% of their traffic volume. Moreover, ten million .com marketing websites are controlled by domain portfolio owners. Nearly 800 businesspeople attended the recent, highly successful T.R.A.F.F.I.C. New York City show in June, during which over $12 million in domain names changed hands in only 3.5 hours!

In addition to informative presentations from domain channel and financial experts on Internet traffic, brand value, domain acquisition, portfolio management, revenue options, development, analytics, risk mitigation, security valuation, sales and more, the primary focus of T.R.A.F.F.I.C. East 2007 will be verticals. These key verticals, for which domain owners host substantial traffic, include, travel, real estate, gaming, financial -- any business from Main St. to Wall Street. A full list of events, topics and key speakers is available at http://www.targetedtraffic.com/miami_show.html.

"The domain industry continues to evolve rapidly," says Rick Schwartz, cofounder of T.R.A.F.F.I.C. and WADND. "The serious businesspeople who have invested hundreds of millions in the backbone of the Internet, which includes domainers, know that today's strategies and investment opportunities may not be as important in a few months. We've all learned so much about different types of website traffic, what surfers look for and what translates into sales. Anyone who owns domains, buys and sells Internet traffic, has Pay-Per- Click (PPC) or search-related companies should come to learn and share at T.R.A.F.F.I.C., including investors, major advertisers, IP attorneys and those at the store level on Main Street."

The climax of every T.R.A.F.F.I.C. conference is the largest live domain auction in the world, hosted by Moniker.com and its CEO, Monte Cahn. The auction at the recent T.R.A.F.F.I.C. East show included one domain that went for $3 million and another for $1.8 million. In all, more than half of all the domains offered were sold.

For the third straight show TrafficZ.com is our overall Diamond Sponsor. Other major sponsors include Fabulous.com, Klickers, Moniker.com, Sedo, NameMedia, Casale Media, LeaseThis.com, EuroDNS and many others.

Every year at the fall conference T.R.A.F.F.I.C. recognizes the company deemed to have best demonstrated an understanding of the use of domains and the Internet. Dubbed the "We Get It" award, the 2006 winner was News Corp. The nomination process is currently in progress and is open to any organization in any industry among the 1,800 invited to the conference. The criteria for consideration is informal, with the awards open to companies that have proven their grasp of the power of Internet by attracting visitors, increasing sales and beating competitors in terms of Internet marketing. Five finalists will be named September 24, with the winner announced at T.R.A.F.F.I.C. East in Miami. Additionally, awards are presented to the Domainer of the Year, Sponsor of the Year, and Best Domain Solution. New members are elected to the Domain Hall of Fame, and the WADND Seal of Approval is bestowed upon registrars who have met certain criteria that prove their commitment to protecting the interests of domain investors.

To request an invitation to T.R.A.F.F.I.C., or to inquire about speaking or sponsorship opportunities, please send email to admin@targetedtraffic.com or fill out our form available at http://www.targetedtraffic.com/contact_us.html.

About T.R.A.F.F.I.C.

Presented by the World Association of Domain Name Developers, Inc. (WADND), T.R.A.F.F.I.C. is the domain industry's premier conference. Three times per year T.R.A.F.F.I.C. brings together domain owners, search engine companies, leading registrars, pay-per-click aggregators, sponsors, Wall Street investors, the banking, financial and advertising communities as well as analysts, developers and experts on targeted traffic. An invitation-only event, conference attendees collectively control over 10 million domain names and host tens of millions of unique visitors to their websites every day. The Internet's biggest companies support and participate in T.R.A.F.F.I.C., including Google, Yahoo!, Sedo.com, Marchex, TrafficZ, Fabulous.com, DomainSponsor.com and many others. Legendary "domain king" Rick Schwartz and Howard Neu, a prominent Intellectual Property attorney and former three-term mayor of North Miami, Florida co-founded and manage the event through their company, the World Association of Domain Name Developers, Inc. (WADND). Corporate headquarters are located at 1152 N. University Drive, Suite 201, Pembroke Pines, Florida, 33024. For more information, send email to admin@targetedtraffic.com or visit us at www.targetedtraffic.com.

Media Contact:
Kent Streeb
Kaya Communications
kent@kayacommunications.com
P: 530.908.9225

Website: http://www.targetedtraffic.com/
Website: http://www.targetedtraffic.com/miami_show.html/

Source

San Bernardino County supervisor sues over domain name

San Bernardino County Supervisor Dennis Hansberger is suing a local critic to get back his name.

Hansberger won a temporary restraining order Tuesday against William Fanning, a Muscoy resident who has registered several domain names using the supervisor's name, including www.dennishansberger.com, and has used the Web sites to rail against Hansberger.

The order restrains Fanning from profiting, promoting or selling the name, said Tim Prince, an attorney for Hansberger.

A preliminary injunction, in which Hansberger seeks to have the Web site turned over to him, is set for a Sept. 26 hearing.

Hansberger will seek a minimum $1,000 in statutory damages plus attorney fees and court costs if Fanning doesn't voluntary relinquish the Web site, Prince said.

When Hansberger's campaign committee inquired about buying the domain name, Fanning told them it wouldn't be cheap, Prince said.

Fanning did not attend Tuesday morning's hearing and said he had not received a subpoena or court order.

"Until then, I'm not stopping," he said.

On his Web site, Fanning accuses Hansberger of using his position to benefit friends and relatives. He also includes articles from other publications that are critical of the supervisor.

Fanning said he's not trying to make money off the Web site but started it three years ago to shine a light on what he believes are corrupt actions. He said Hansberger's suit would not silence him and predicted it would draw more traffic to his Web site.

"This will end up exploding and backfiring on him big time," Fanning said.

Hansberger could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

Prince said Hansberger does not dispute Fanning's right to criticize.

"It's just the use of that name to divert the public from finding the official Web site and finding the Web site that Dennis Hansberger seeks to set up to communicate with the public," he said.

Jennifer Granick, the civil liberties director for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a nonprofit organization that champions the rights of people using the Internet, said the law regarding the fair use of domain names still is hazy.

Web sites were set up to be created on a first-come, first-serve basis, but a federal anti-cybersquatting law was passed in 1999 to offer some protection to trademark owners, she said. It's not clear whether that same protection is available to politicians, Granick said.

"This is definitely an area where there is very little if any precedent," said Granick, who until recently headed Stanford University Law School's Cyberlaw Clinic.

Fanning, who owns a market in Muscoy and is a maintenance worker for the county, estimated that he has registered a few thousand names, including those of about 80 local officials.

San Bernardino City Attorney James Penman, Supervisor Josie Gonzales and County Administrative Officer Mark Uffer are among the local officials whose names he has snapped up on the Internet.

Fanning said the costs to him are minimal -- between $1and $5.

Not all the sites have content, but he said he likes to have them for possible future use.

"I want to get rid of the really bad politicians first, and then I'll go onto the other ones," he said.

Source

Australian Business to Welcome Crack Down on 'Domain Tasting'

LAWFUEL - The Legal Newswire - Sydney, 4 September 2007: An intellectual property expert with national law firm Hunt & Hunt says the investigation by the leading global regulating body for the Internet, Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), into the
practice of ‘domain tasting’ will be welcomed by Australian businesses.

Domain tasting is the controversial process by which users register domain names to test their effectiveness in collecting additional traffic and then cancel registration before fees become due.

The call for the investigation follows the discovery that less than one per cent of .org domain names end up being registered.

“For business owners, this is a much-needed initiative,” said Catherine Logan, who is a partner with Hunt & Hunt.

“People who want to use the Internet to promote their business will welcome the increase in available names. Domain tasting has been unnecessarily tying up millions of available domain names and adversely impacting the average domain name registrant,” she said.

Ms Logan said VeriSign, the company which controls the .com and .net generic top level domains, was set to increase registry fees for these domains next month, to accommodate the upgrade to registration systems required to cope with the flood of automated applications by speculators.

“Clearly the operational load on the registry systems caused by domain tasting is reason for concern,” she said, citing VeriSign’s own figures suggesting that in the last
seven years, domain name inquiries have risen from 1 billion to 30 billion per day.

Ms Logan said that while the lack of domain name choice has become increasingly frustrating for business, criminal practices such as phishing and pharming – activities commonly linked to domain tasting – have posed an even greater concern for businesses operating in an online environment.

According to Ms Logan, anonymous parties frequently register domains as replica sites in an effort to obtain confidential information from unaware customers. Through this practice, users are able to temporarily set up web pages that look similar to authentic sites, and extract private data without risk of identification as they are yet to
register the domain name.

“This loophole obviously presents an unacceptable risk to both businesses and their clients. There are also other unwanted commercial side effects of domain tasting, such as consumer confusion and increased costs to regular businesses that have to register names defensively and allocate resources to monitoring the situation,” Ms Logan said.
She said the ICANN investigation will look for ways to counteract such unnecessary
costs for businesses as a result of this process.

“This investigation is welcomed, particularly at a time when ICANN is proposing to allow the introduction of new generic top level domains,” she said.

Source

Domainers

Domainers are individuals whose profession is the accumulation and dealing of generic internet domain names. Although controversially compared to cybersquatters and ticket scalpers, Domainers claim to differentiate and legitimize themselves by avoiding trademarked names and potentially contentious domain names, and refraining from typosquatting. They consider their conduct in buying, selling, and developing domain names to be in the same spirit as real estate investing. Domainers generate revenue via domain parking, through the resale of domain names and by developing domain names into fully functioning websites. Domainers are also sometimes referred to as domain investors and commercial registrants.

As of December 2006 there are an estimated 8,000 to 10,000 individuals globally who make buying and selling domain names a part of their business. USA Today reported that many Domainers prefer to remain anonymous due to the competitive and controversial nature of their business.

A report in USA Today states that known sales of 5,851 domain names generated $29 million in 2005, compared with known sales of 3,813 names for $15 million in 2004.Like the tip of an iceberg, the number of reported sales is estimated to be 5-10% of the broader secondary domain resale market.

Source: Wikipedia

Planning for the future

Before he is even born, some parents are lining up their child’s life.

Trust fund? Check.

Enrollment in that posh pre-school? Done.

Internet domain name? Got it.

Yes, for some parents, getting their child his own domain name is as normal and expected a parental duty as sending him to college.

In fact, some parents wait to name their child until they know the matching domain name is available.

Sounds a bit backward to us, but there you go.

“One of the criteria was, if we liked the name, the domain had to be available,” said Mark Pankow, who wished to name his fifth child “Bennett.” He got his wish.

How important is having an Internet identity?

“It is the starting point for your on-line identity,” Warren Adelman, president of GoDaddy.com Inc., told the Associated Press. “We do believe the domain name is the foundation upon which all the other Internet services are based.”

Of course, Mr. Adelman is in the business of selling domain names.

Not so fast, said researcher Peter Gruenwald, whose company specializes in kids and technology. “Given the pace of change on the Internet, it strikes me as a pretty impressive leap of faith that we’re going to use exactly the same system and the same tools ... 15 to 20 years from today.”

Some parents use the addresses themselves to send out baby updates to friends and family. By the time Junior is old enough to join in, he’ll have a huge network of contacts.

Other parents just lie low, merely paying the annual fee necessary to keep the name. That may be particularly true for parents of daughters - at least if they are wise. If a name is trafficked over the Internet, predators have an easier chance of locating a child as a potential target.

And the easier a name is to remember, the more directly it links to its holder, the simpler it is for a predator to make contact. Finding a child’s picture in a yearbook and typing in her name can quickly call up her Web address.

Joanie Smith is a lot easier to locate at Joaniesmith.com than, say, at jsmith848.com.

What’s fascinating about all this is the assumption by techno-savvy parents that an online identity is so vital - a must-have accoutrement to modern life.

Privacy was once a much stronger value in America. Laconic idols such as Gary Cooper and John Wayne symbolized (among other things) the wisdom of reticence.

Now we share intimate details with Internet strangers whom we style as “friends” - and parents consider it wise to ensure that, one day, their children will be able to do the same.


Source

Bodog.com shut down after judgment

Bodog.com shut down after judgment



LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- Online gambling Web site Bodog.com has been down since Monday because of a $46.6 million default judgment obtained by Las Vegas-based 1st Technology in a patent infringement case.

The judgment issued June 13 in Nevada federal court was against Bodog Entertainment Group, S.A., Bodog.net and Bodog.com.

According to court filings, software downloaded by the Web site's customers to enable some of the gaming activities infringed on patents held by 1st Technology.

1st Technology is controlled by Los Gatos, Calif.-based Scott Lewis, who has a doctorate in adaptive digital signal processing from Oxford University.

Bodog.com entertainment, headquartered in the Caribbean nation of Antigua, is running off a new Web site, newbodog.com, launched Tuesday.

Lewis and his attorneys could not be reached for comment.


Source

Latest VeriSign Domain Name Industry Brief Underscores Growth of Internet Internationally

Latest VeriSign Domain Name Industry Brief Underscores Growth of Internet Internationally

The number of domain names registered globally now totals more than 138 million, according to the second quarter 2007 Domain Name Industry Brief published by VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ: VRSN), the leading provider of digital infrastructure for the networked world.

The largest top-level domains (TLD) in terms of total base of registrations are .com, .de (Germany), .net, .uk (United Kingdom), .cn (China) and .org. A factor in the expansion of domain name registrations in the second quarter was strong growth in country code TLD (ccTLD) registrations, such as China (.cn), Russia (.ru) and South Korea (.kr). ccTLDs grew to about 51.5 million by the end of the second quarter, approximately 13 percent more than the first quarter of 2007, and 36 percent more than the same quarter of last year. Other gTLDs saw growth as well, including .com and .net, which grew to 73 million domain name registrations.

Not surprisingly, as domain name registrations increased, so have the demands on the registry infrastructures that enable users to register domain names, access Web sites, send emails or conduct commerce and communications. VeriSign's registry infrastructure continued to experience heavy demand, processing a peak of 30 billion Domain Name System (DNS) queries per day in the second quarter. The VeriSign DNS continued to maintain operational accuracy and stability for 100 percent of the time as it has for the past nine years. As part of its commitment to continually strengthen its infrastructure, VeriSign in February announced Project Titan, a major initiative to expand and diversify the capacity of its global Internet infrastructure by ten times by the year 2010.

"As the Internet grows and becomes more global, so does the challenge to ensure that businesses and Internet users throughout the world can rely upon it," said Raynor Dahlquist, vice president of Naming Services at VeriSign. "VeriSign is focused on ensuring that as the Internet develops, it remains accessible and operational around the world."

The latest VeriSign Domain Name Industry Brief also underscores the growing importance of international business for the more than 840 .com and .net domain name registrars throughout the world. These registrars and their resellers comprise the channel through which domain names are registered. A recent survey conducted by VeriSign found that 80 percent of all registrars draw business from countries outside their home country. Overall, registrars say they view expansion to other countries as an attractive way to build their businesses, with a third of those surveyed planning to expand geographically in the next 12 months.

VeriSign publishes the Domain Name Industry Brief to provide Internet users throughout the world with significant statistical and analytical research and data on the domain name industry and the Internet as a whole. Copies of the 2007 second quarter Domain Name Industry Brief, as well as previous reports, can be obtained at www.verisign.com/domainbrief.

About VeriSign

VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ: VRSN) operates digital infrastructure services that enable and protect billions of interactions every day across the world's voice and data networks. Additional news and information about the company is available at www.verisign.com.

Statements in this announcement other than historical data and information constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause VeriSign's actual results to differ materially from those stated or implied by such forward-looking statements. The potential risks and uncertainties include, among others, the uncertainty of future revenue and profitability and potential fluctuations in quarterly operating results due to such factors as increasing competition and pricing pressure from competing services offered at prices below its prices and market acceptance of its existing services, the inability of VeriSign to successfully develop and market new services and the uncertainty of whether new services as provided by VeriSign will achieve market acceptance or result in any revenues and the risk acquired businesses will not be integrated successfully and unanticipated costs of such integration. More information about potential factors that could affect the company's business and financial results is included in VeriSign's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2006 and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K. VeriSign undertakes no obligation to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this presentation.

Source

Why PPC Works so Wel

Why PPC Works so Well..

by Frank Schilling

If I had a dollar for every time somebody offered to "take one of my inactive domains of my hands", I'd have a big, fat, rapper-size brick of cash.

People just don't understand that a parked domain that looks entirely inactive can quietly be making it's owner hundreds, thousands or tens of thousands of dollars each month! The user experience is so passive and benign, the ad so inert, "there is just no way you're making more off ads than I'm going to offer you" .. At least that's what I'm told in in a flurry of daily unsolicited sales inquiries. It's not the case of course. Usually unsolicited sales offers have us falling out of our chair they are so laughably out of wack with the revenues (existing or potential) of generic names.

But why is it that people seem to be drawn to ads which so obviously look like ads?.. How are they able to draw clicks and convert into sales so amazingly well?

On the flight home from California today, I read this story in Businessweek. Apparently TIVO has uncovered a parallel phenomenon to domain name PPC ads on TV. Who knew that providing relevant info to the subject matter of the domain name people choose to type, could act as a catalyst to close a sale? Well okay.. it looks obvious now that I write it but in the ad business it is anything but obvious.

Quote: "IF THERE'S ONE LESSON from TiVo Stop||Watch, it's that relevancy outweighs creativity in TV commercials--by a lot. The ads on the "least-fast-forwarded" list aren't funny, they aren't touching, and they aren't clever. And they don't have big budgets."

People pay agencies billions each year to make cool and funny commercials to sell us stuff. Only those commercials don't usually work. The stuff people want, the stuff that sells is much more simple. Give us information so we can make an informed decision.. People want reality in television and reality in advertising... Apparently that's what sells.

Thank-you TIVO.


Source

Paris chosen for next ICANN public meeting

MARINA DEL REY, Calif.: Paris, France will host the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers’ 32nd International Public Meeting from 22-27 June 2008.

At its 14 August 2007 meeting, the ICANN Board accepted the proposal put forward by Association pour la Gouvernance de l’Internet en France, en Europe, et dans le monde (AGIFEM).

“ICANN is looking forward to working with AGIFEM and welcoming the global Internet community to Paris,” said Paul Levins, ICANN’s Executive Officer and Vice President - Corporate Affairs. “We had two highly competitive proposals to host the meeting slated for ICANN’s European region – a testament to the great local Internet communities in France and Serbia.”

Each year ICANN holds three meetings in different regions around the world. These meetings constitute an essential part of ICANN's global consensus-building and outreach efforts. The ICANN Meetings Committee sets the regions in which ICANN will hold its meetings. Proposals are then solicited from organizations interested in hosting the ICANN Meeting.

ICANN has received a number of competitive bids to host the 31st Public Meeting, slated to be held 10-15 February 2008 in the Asia-Pacific region. They are being closely evaluated and a decision will be made shortly.

About ICANN:

ICANN is responsible for the global coordination of the Internet's system of unique identifiers like domain names (like .org, .museum and country codes like .uk) and the addresses used in a variety of Internet protocols that help computers reach each other over the Internet. Careful management of these resources is vital to the Internet's operation, so ICANN's global stakeholders meet regularly to develop policies that ensure the Internet's ongoing security and stability. ICANN is an internationally organized, public benefit non-profit company. For more information please visit: www.icann.org.

Media Contacts:

Jason Keenan
Media Adviser, ICANN (USA)
Ph: +1 310 382 4004
E: jason.keenan@icann.org

International: Andrew Robertson
Edelman (London)
Ph: +44 7921 588 770
E: andrew.robertson@edelman.com


Source

PSU’s old website hosts dating, porn links

NEW DELHI, SEPTEMBER 2 : If hacked e-mail addresses of officials from DRDO, NDA and Indian missions across the world were not enough to expose the holes in India’s cyber security, there is more. The old web address of the Central Inland Waterways Transport Corporation Ltd (CIWTC) — a Kolkata-based PSU under the Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport & Highways — has been hosting a Russian site with elaborate pornographic links for over a month now.

Although the domain name expired in June last year, the CIWTC only launched its new website, www.ciwtcltd.com, recently after it found out about the pornographic links. The old site, www.ciwtc.com, is still there and still has those links.

The PSU has now filed complaints with the police and cautioned National Informatics Centre (NIC). “The website (www.ciwtc.com) was not really hacked but taken over by a Russian company as our domain name had expired. We learnt of some pornographic links displayed on the website and told National Informatics Centre, which blocked the links. So no damage has been done,” said Praful Tayal, CMD of CIWTC.

The Russian www.ciwtc.com lists several pornographic links with the catchline “What you need, when you need it”. On its home page, the site has links under the heads “Hot” and “Popular”. While “Christian Singles” and “Russian Girl” are listed as hot links, “Training in Shalimar Shipyard” and “Old Ladies” are among popular search words.

CIWTC says it has informed the international Internet protocol body — Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) — the agency responsible for the global coordination of the Internet’s system of unique identifiers. “We lodged a police complaint a week back and informed the cyber crime cell. We also recently put out advertisements, informing the public of the change in our web address,” Tayal said.

So why did the CIWTC react so late after its URL expired in June 2006? The only IT personnel there took voluntary retirement last year. After he left, no one bothered to check when and how the domain name was taken over by the Russian dating site.

Source

Bodog loses control of domain names in lawsuit.

At the time of that story, there were few reports regarding the cause for the loss of control, and Bodog’s statement alluded only vaguely to legal issues.

Now reports are surfacing that the domain was awarded to a US citizen as part of a judgment stemming from a patent suit against Bodog that the company failed to respond to. As reported on ShoeMoney.com:

“Earlier today the Bodog website (bodog.com) went down. Many people thought it was just technical issues. A good friend inside Bodog pinged me and told me that the site was actually yanked out from under Bodog’s hands earlier today.

Apparently, some guy in the US who was awarded a patent for something to do with taking bets online filed a lawsuit against Bodog awhile back. Bodog didn’t respond because they are not a US company. So a judge awarded a default judgment of 50 million.

Yesterday, the guy with the judgment used it to seize control of Bodog’s domain names from Enom. Almost all of their sites are now offline, and now they are going to loose all of their SERPS.”

Source

Top 30 Most WASTED Domains!

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Internet domain names the new 21st century real estate

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Online domain name game yields real profits for virtual brokers

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Useful Information on Registering Domain Names

Registering a domain name has become a very simple, common procedure. People all over the world from all kind of different countries register domain names for different purposes. So if you are also interested in registering a domain name, there are some things you should know before starting the entire procedure.

There are many aspects regarding the procedure of registering a domain name. Some domain names are available from some resources but some others aren’t yet on the market. Consequently, if you want to use a certain domain name you have no other choice but using the services of that domain name’s registrars. If you are wondering what a domain registrar is, you should know that they are being approved by the ICANN or the International Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers. The purpose of this organisation is to help people like you in getting a domain name.

The first thing you should know is the fact that nobody can access and change the leading data base of that domain name you are using. This is possible because InterNIC is dealing with the leading data base, together with the domain name registrars. In the end, the domain name registrars are in charge of everything when it comes to registering a domain name. And if you are wondering what the leading data base might be, here is the answer. The leading database is a database which contains the entire necessary documentation on all the domain names registered until the date you register too.

Another thing you should be aware of is the fact that some domain name registrars sometimes happen to be out of the list. It is most likely that these registrars are actually taking hold for registering a domain name and they are in the end reselling the domain name for the accredited domain name registrar.

But these kinds of registrars don’t do this registering thing for free. In most cases they state their fee for registering domain names. The price is actually a fee paid every year which is usually paid by the domain name holders and consumers. These domain name registrars are also offering some discounts for those who will register for longer than a year. The longest period of domain name registration is maximum 10 years.

In conclusion, registering domain names has become a very common thing to do. You just have to pay the fee and there you are: you have registered for a domain name!


For an established site to facilitate the buying and selling of domain names, domain name ownership , domain names trading just visit us.

Source

Moniker.com Brokers Two Multi-Million Dollar Domain Name Sales at T.R.A.F.F.I.C. NYC CreditCheck.com and Seniors.com Both Sold During the Auction

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Tucows Sells 2,500 Domain Names

TORONTO, June 19 /CNW/ - Tucows Inc. (AMEX:TCX, TSX:TC) today announced
that it has sold approximately 2,500 domain names from its portfolio of domain
names for US$3.0 million in a private transaction. Tucows may earn up to an
additional US$1.2 million if certain performance criteria are met. Any
additional payment will be payable in one year's time.
"This sale indicates some of the latent value of our domain name
portfolio," said Elliot Noss, President and CEO of Tucows Inc. "As I have
stated in the past, we will continue to be opportunistic with our domain name
assets. While, this transaction does contain revenue-generating assets, we
felt that the sale was appropriate. This transaction also provides us with an
opportunity to step back and evaluate some operating possibilities.
Accordingly, while we now believe our cash flow from operations for 2007 will
likely be at the top end of the US$10 million to US$12 million range, we do
not expect to be discussing any possible change in guidance until our next
conference call at the earliest."

This release may contain forward-looking statements, relating to the
Company's operations or to the environment in which it operates, which are
based on Tucows Inc.'s operations, estimates, forecasts and projections. These
statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to
important risks, uncertainties and assumptions concerning future conditions
that may ultimately prove to be inaccurate or differ materially from actual
future events or results. A number of important factors could cause actual
outcomes and results to differ materially from those expressed in these
forward-looking statements. Consequently, investors should not place undue
reliance on these forward-looking statements, which are based on Tucows Inc.'s
current expectations, estimates, projections, beliefs and assumptions. These
forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this presentation and
are based upon the information available to Tucows Inc. at this time. Tucows
Inc. disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future
events or otherwise.

About Tucows

Tucows Inc. is the largest Internet services provider for hosting
companies and ISPs. Through our network of over 7,000 service providers around
the world we provide millions of email boxes and manage over seven million
domains. Tucows is an accredited registrar with ICANN (the Internet Corporate
for Assigned Names and Numbers). Tucows remains one of the most popular
software download sites on the Internet. For more information please visit:
http://about.tucows.com.

Domain names for sale! Tobacco.info, and more!

Please contact me at godfrey90sf@aol.com, or call (307) 220-3440 regarding the purchase of these domain names. All payments will be made via Paypal, buyer pays fees.

aids.info - 23,000

Fear.info $4,000

Distance.info $3,000

john.info - 5,000

arabia.info - 7,500

juan.info - 5,000

jim.info - 7,000

robert.info - 3,500

Lee.info - $8,000

exercise.info – 15,000

tobacco.info – 15,000

dave.info – 4,600

NorthKorea.info -15,500

SouthKorea.info – 15,500

Healthy.info – 13,500

Wrestling.info – 12,000

Handguns.info – 4,500

The domain names are also for sale here:
http://www.dnforum.com/showthread.php?t=234001

Chinese domain names used.

Important Websites run by city government departments have adopted domain names using Chinese characters to make them easier for elderly people and others not fluent in pinyin to use, the city's IT commission said yesterday, Shanghai Daily reported.

Names using Chinese characters have been adopted by the Websites run by the Shanghai Municipal People's Congress Website (www.spcsc.com) and the local government's portal (www.shanghai.gov.cn), which attracted 200 million page-views in 2006, according to Shanghai Municipal Informatization Commission. They can still be reached using their old domain names.

Source
www.whataredomains.com

What's wrong with .biz domains?

What's Wrong wth .biz Domain Names

Submitted by Aaron Wall on Mon, 06/11/2007 - 08:08.

Question: I have a .biz website that ranks well in some of the major search engines for a few keywords, but does not rank as well as I would like for many other keywords. Should I consider switching to a .com domain name?

Answer: In the long run I think it is worth moving away from .biz if you are creating a real long-term business. The web was created to share information, and businesses are generally viewed less admirably than the individuals that work in them. As long as relevancy algorithms are based largely on links, then a .biz extension could hurt your exposure in most fields.

Most web companies that control large traffic flow have taught their userbase (and those who they trust to vote) that commercial = spam. To put this in perspective, some journalists write entire articles about businesses and then do not link to the businesses because they feel that doing so would be too promotional. In competitive fields sometimes only a few links separate a business that is getting 5% of the traffic or 30% of the traffic a search engine offers.

If you are starting your business on a .biz it doesn't matter if you have the best information in the world...the bias of .biz (and toward business in general) is going to hurt your exposure, making your business less efficient and increasing your business cost. The small businesses that are best sustainable on the web are those that function as businesses yet have the feel of non-commercial sites (and acquire links as though they are non-commercial sites).

Source
www.whataredomains.com

The Apple iPhone

Capping literally years of speculation on perhaps the most intensely followed unconfirmed product in Apple's history -- and that's saying a lot -- the iPhone has been announced today. Yeah, we said it: "iPhone," the name the entire free world had all but unanimously christened it from the time it'd been nothing more than a twinkle in Stevie J's eye (comments, Cisco?). Sweet, glorious specs of the 11.6 millimeter device (that's frickin' thin, by the way) include a 3.5-inch 480 x 320 touchscreen display with multi-touch support and a proximity sensor to turn off the screen when it's close to your face, 2 megapixel cam, 4GB or 8 GB of storage, Bluetooth 2.0 with EDR and A2DP, WiFi that automatically engages when in range, and quad-band GSM radio with EDGE. Perhaps most amazingly, though, it somehow runs OS X with support for Widgets, Google Maps, and Safari, and iTunes (of course) with CoverFlow out of the gate. A partnership with Yahoo will allow all iPhone customers to hook up with free push IMAP email. Apple quotes 5 hours of battery life for talk or video, with a full 16 hours in music mode -- no word on standby time yet. In a twisted way, this is one rumor mill we're almost sad to see grind to a halt; after all, when is the next time we're going to have an opportunity to run this picture? The 4GB iPhone will go out the door in the US as a Cingular exclusive for $499 on a two-year contract, 8GB for $599. Ships Stateside in June, Europe in fourth quarter, Asia in 2008.

Source
www.whataredomains.com

Masters of their domains

The domain-name market is enjoying a great resurgence, writes Dan Skeen.

FOR years, gleeful capitalists have read about moon-shot domain speculation deals, as when Marc Ostrofsky sold the Business.com domain and turned his $US150,000 ($A183,000) investment into a $7.5 million sale. But the domain name market itself has had a phenomenal revival.

Australia is cashing in as well. Last week, jobs.com.au was bought by an obscure internet firm for a reported six-figure sum.

Shaking off some lean years following the dotcom deflation of the late 1990s, it is in the middle of a buying spree that may never be repeated. Like today's crop of web 2.0 success stories, new momentum has come from more sophisticated technology and more profitable opportunities. These same trends have fostered the growth of massive domain name portfolios that some claim have the potential to make Warren Buffet drool.

Dan Warner, chief strategy officer at Brisbane-based Dark Blue Sea Limited, is used to watching multimillion-dollar sales of domains such as Diamond.com and Vodka.com take the headlines. His story of a slow and steady accumulation of domains, bought for less than $7 and sold for thousands, day in and day out for several years, lacks get-rich-quick appeal. Yet this measured approach to domain accumulation has grown a $A5 million initial investment into a company with a market cap of $68 million.

His company holds the world's second-largest portfolio of domain names, with more than 550,000. NameMedia Inc., of Waltham, Massachusetts, has about 725,000. Together, these two companies hold more than 1 per cent of the world's domains.

Mr Warner recalls that just two years ago only 18 or 19 companies had more than 10,000 domains; today he estimates that 50 companies have portfolios of more than that size. "Everyone's been buying like mad," he says.

There certainly has been growth of domain-name portfolios: businesses built entirely around domain names, says Warren Adelman, president and chief executive of the world's largest domain name registrar, GoDaddy.

Last year saw the total number of top-level domain registrations reach 120,000,000, according to VeriSign, an increase of 32 per cent for the year. And the big portfolios are getting bigger. It's a buyers' market in the minds of many who make a living off domain names, which would explain why the pace of buying hasn't yet been matched by sales volume in the domain-name aftermarket.

"People were originally speculating, but over the last few years people are realising that this market is still emerging and is quite undervalued," says Alessandro Sorbello of Brisbane-based Intuitive Domains. "So the tendency is to acquire domain names and not put them on the market but to hold them."

One factor driving this buying spree is the effectiveness of cost-per-click contextual advertising offered by Yahoo! and Google. Before 2003, parked domains relied on generally less-lucrative banner ads. Today's parked pages serve up sponsored links related to the domain name which, when clicked, earn revenue for the domain owner. "There's a whole industry that has arisen from the monetisation of these domain names through the application of content on these pages," Mr Adelman says. According to VeriSign, 23 per cent of all .com and .net domains - almost 15 million sites - consist entirely of a single parked page.

One might think a website with no real content would not attract visitors, but domain speculators are attuned to the notion of direct navigation or "natural search", where an internet user types a URL directly into their browser address bar assuming they will find related content. For example, a fishing enthusiast might go directly to a likely domain name such as Queenslandcharters.com. If the page has nothing but a set of advertiser links to related content, there's a good chance for a click-through. The pay-off is small change for each click but direct navigation added up to $US800 million in 2006 and could reach $1.1 billion this year, says Jordan Rohan, an analyst with RBC Capital Markets.

Another factor encouraging buyers is improvements in the aftermarket buying and selling process. Popular exchanges such as Fabulousdomains.com, GreatDomains.com and Sedo.com list thousands of domains available for sale. Domain name auctions are also a popular method of selling off inventory.

Finally, the automated tools of the trade have improved dramatically. Five years ago Dark Blue Sea created a market intelligence engine designed to find domain-name opportunities based on factors including the frequency of a search phrase in search engines, and bids by search engine advertisers for those terms. While Mr Warner won't divulge any trade secrets, what he describes is a sophisticated software system founded on language recognition. "What we do is much closer to linguistics than it is to some sort of marketing activity," he says. The capacity to mine and manage millions of domain names has been used in some cases for dubious business practices that, like registered trademark domain squatting of old, have tainted the efforts of an industry that has already seen its share of scandalous practices.

One of these is "domain tasting" or "catch-and-release", a practice where the buyer takes advantage of a five-day grace period designed to allow a domain registrant to get a refund if an error (such as a typo in their submission) has been made. Some domain name buyers have leveraged this loophole to purchase millions of domains, monitor their traffic for five days, and then return all but the best few for a full refund. Some have gone further with a practice known as "kiting". They leverage the same five-day grace period, but perpetually release and renew within the five-day window, essentially owning the domains at no cost. For the most part, registries such as VeriSign have worked with registrars to modify their terms and conditions to put an end to kiting.

New entrants to the domain business are finding many ways to make a profit. Mr Warner suggests that natural language tools have picked clean all the best opportunities, but others are more optimistic about their odds for portfolio building.

Mr Sorbello says: "It's still possible to register interesting domain names, but you just have to be a little more creative. We register five to 10 per month in market sectors that people have just overlooked or that have come back into the market."

Also, Mr Adelman says, . a memorable name may be more important for a budding business than one that draws traffic from direct navigation. "We chose GoDaddy not because it told people what we did, but it was certainly something we wanted people to remember, and we felt that GoDaddy would be remembered," he says with a laugh.

Peter Davis, a Boston-area entrepreneur who makes a living selling websites, has found a nice gap between the sale price of some websites and the domain-name aftermarket. "There are instances where I've bought a website that was sold based on current earnings, and you can strip the files off the site and sell the domain for incrementally more than the website was worth itself," he says. He looks for domains in "bottom-feeder" places where people are selling sites.

Perhaps the most value is being derived from those who put in the effort to develop domains. One popular strategy is to acquire several quality domains within a niche category and then develop a portal based on that topic. Done right, it also enables the developer to then sell that site for a vastly greater sum. Shopping.com is an example. The owners took this excellent domain and added non-proprietary technology, affiliate product, and then used search advertising to drive traffic to the site. eBay bought the business and the domain for $US620 million in 2005.

Some investors forgo research and instead invest directly in companies with large portfolios of domain names. In much the same way that a real-estate trust or a mutual fund attracts investors through the value of the underlying holdings, publicly traded companies such as Marchex and Dark Blue Sea rely on the growth potential of their domain-name portfolios as an incentive for investors.

For a Brisbane-based company with 550,000 domains in its portfolio, one might expect a healthy supply of .com.au domains. But Mr Warner says he has none.Mr Sorbello, also based in Brisbane, has none either. "This market is extremely buoyant in many parts of the world, but because the .com.au domain name system has been so stringently regulated . . . that essentially stifles the Australian marketplace," Mr Sorbello says.

The .com.au suffix is managed by .au Domain Administration Ltd (auDA) and governed by different regulations than most top-level domains. To buy domains you must first pass residence restrictions and prove a "close and substantial connection" to the name being registered. Perhaps most prohibitive is a restriction on selling domains in bad faith for speculative purposes - a domain can only be sold if a business is sold with it. Some speculators have worked around this by adding a business registration and selling the domain as an asset of that business, but the need for such workarounds is enough to discourage many domain name companies.

However that policy is up for review. Derek Whitehead, chairman of auDA's 2007 Names Policy Advisory Panel, isn't too concerned about what the domain-name speculators are buying. "For ordinary businesses it's an open question as to whether they're interested in buying and selling domain names," he says.

Not surprisingly, speculators such as Mr Warner are hopeful for a marketplace more characteristic of other regions.

"If domain names were easier to buy, trade, sell and transfer as assets, it would probably free up a lot of domain stock held by speculators that won't give the domains up - but also have no means to extract their value," he says.

Domain-name companies dislike the extensive paperwork associated with .com.au domains. Mr Warner also cites cost as a factor, comparing his wholesale domain registration rate of $US6.25 for .com domains to the $30 or $40 required for a .com.au domain. Another disincentive is the lack of natural traffic, as those who use direct navigation will rarely visit a .com.au suffix.

But don't expect any gold rush on Australian virtual real estate when the results of the policy review are made available (about July). "If there was a decision to create some kind of an aftermarket, it's highly likely that it would be a regulated aftermarket," Mr Whitehead says.

"Certainly some of the rules that apply in the Australian domain space would be extremely likely to continue to apply."


The top domain sales in 2006 (all $US):

1. Diamond.com, $7.5 million - Online diamond and jewellery retailer Ice.com bought the domain from Odimo Inc.

2. Vodka.com, $3 million -

Bought by Roustam Tariko, the billionaire entrepreneur behind Russia's biggest vodka maker Russian Standard Co.

3. Cameras.com, $1.5 million - Sold in a live domain auction to Sig Solares of Parked.com.

4. NAV.no, $717,978 - The Norwegian government bought this domain for its work and welfare administration website.

5. On.com, $635,000 - Moniker/Domain Systems sold the domain, which redirects to a personals site.




Source
www.whataredomains.com