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Suuuure! let me just surrender my unique domain for you! YEAH RIGHT.

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  • Suuuure! let me just surrender my unique domain for you! YEAH RIGHT.

    Ok, this is a first for me, though I have heard of some other people in the past that have had people email them randomly out of the blue wanting to purchase their domain name from them.

    I own a domain name that I have now owned since 2003, so going on 10 years now. Not long ago I scrapped my old site and put up an "under construction" page informing the public that a new site was in the works and to visit again soon.

    Some bright spark apparently interpreted that as "This site is completely vacant and up for purchase by the highest bidder!" - sure enough, they emailed me, expressing interest in purchasing the domain since they are starting a company under the same name as what my domain is.

    I politely informed them that such a thing was not possible, because:
    1. I am still making use of the site for my own purposes
    2. The domain name and all content contained within were considered intellectual copyrights, with trademark pending on the site name itself (I'm in early stages of finding out what is involved)
    3. I have owned the site for almost 10 years and am more than a little attached to it.

    Roughly 48 hours later I receive a polite but firm email from Domainz (one of the main domain registrars in New Zealand) saying that they had received an email claiming I was cyber-squatting on a domain name that the person wanted. Surprise surprise, it was the person that I had shot down a couple of days prior!

    Thankfully due to the extremely professional nature of the company, they had looked into the WHOIS records and seen that I have owned the domain name since 2003, plus observed that the site actually contains content and is not a placeholder site like a lot of true squatters and that no further action would be taken.

    Apparently senor douchebag was not satisfied with the ruling of Domainz though and decided to persist with further emails demanding that I sell the domain name to him or open it for backorder - to which I replied "I will happily open my domain for backorder, it should become available for purchase some time in the year 2030, give or take a year."
    Violets are blue,
    Roses are red,
    I bequeath to thee...
    A boot to the head >_>

  • #2
    Quoth Kagato View Post
    Apparently senor douchebag was not satisfied with the ruling of Domainz though and decided to persist with further emails demanding that I sell the domain name to him or open it for backorder - to which I replied "I will happily open my domain for backorder, it should become available for purchase some time in the year 2030, give or take a year."
    What an idiot. Nothing wrong with asking, of course, but one needs to take no for an answer.
    Life: Reality TV for deities. - dalesys

    Comment


    • #3
      Similar thing

      I used to have a company. Here in the land of Oz we register our company names at a government department that rules on clashes/similarities in names. So I had ABC Software (for instance) and some clown in a physically remote area wanted ABC Programming. The government department in charge told him the name he wanted was too close to mine and he could not register it.

      He wrote to me asking me to tell the department it was OK because the name was not too close and he was a long way from me. There was no way I was going to do that, because I had the name for about 7 or 8 years by then and it was well known throughout the land of Oz.

      As well, lots of my suppliers for hardware were in his area and the potential for the mother of all fuckups was right there in the similar name.

      So I ignored his letter. I had better things to do. He wrote to me again, and again I ignored it.

      So he rang me and gave me an earful about how urgent it was that I get in touch with the government department as he wanted to start trading under that name. So when he stopped talking I asked:-

      "What made you think that I would just give you my company name? The government department has ruled that the name you chose is too close to mine and I have no problem with that."

      "You mean you aren't going to get in touch with them?" he whined.

      "Aha!", I thought "The penny has dropped"

      "Yes" I said "goodbye" and hung up.

      Comment


      • #4
        Quoth gerund View Post
        I used to have a company. Here in the land of Oz we register our company names at a government department that rules on clashes/similarities in names. So I had ABC Software (for instance) and some clown in a physically remote area wanted ABC Programming. The government department in charge told him the name he wanted was too close to mine and he could not register it.
        <MR SNIPPY WAS HERE>

        "What made you think that I would just give you my company name? The government department has ruled that the name you chose is too close to mine and I have no problem with that."

        "You mean you aren't going to get in touch with them?" he whined.

        "Aha!", I thought "The penny has dropped"

        "Yes" I said "goodbye" and hung up.

        yeaaaaah, sounds like he was hoping to cash in on your popularity from people assuming that the two companies were the same -.-
        Last edited by iradney; 04-15-2013, 03:12 PM. Reason: Please don't quote the entire post. We have already read it.
        Violets are blue,
        Roses are red,
        I bequeath to thee...
        A boot to the head >_>

        Comment


        • #5
          I know it would be more trouble than it's worth, but what about telling him you'll sell it -- for some outlandishly high dollar amount?

          Like, if he says, "I want to buy your domain!" you could say, "Sure! $10 million and it's yours!"
          Skilled programmers aren't cheap. Cheap programmers aren't skilled.

          Comment


          • #6
            Quoth mjr View Post
            ... "Sure! $10 million and it's yours!"
            Tkat would be the tender millions, would it not?
            I am not an a**hole. I am a hemorrhoid. I irritate a**holes!
            Procrastination: Forward planning to insure there is something to do tomorrow.
            Derails threads faster than a pocket nuke.

            Comment


            • #7
              This post reminded me of a similar post from our own Seraph, Enemy of Normalcy.
              PWNADE(TM) - Serve up a glass today! | PWNZER - An act of pwnage so awesome, it's like the victim got hit by a tank.

              There are only Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse because I choose to walk!

              Comment


              • #8
                Quoth mjr View Post
                I know it would be more trouble than it's worth, but what about telling him you'll sell it -- for some outlandishly high dollar amount?
                This might not actually be the best idea, as it has been interpreted in the past as squatting.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Quoth ender View Post
                  This might not actually be the best idea, as it has been interpreted in the past as squatting.
                  Only if there's no proof that it wasn't being used. So squatting doesn't apply in this case.

                  Extortion might, but it would be legal anyways.
                  I AM the evil bastard!
                  A+ Certified IT Technician

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