The Next Web

Deadpool: Domain tasting and kiting industry

Written on January 27, 2008 – 5:04 pm
Ernst-Jan Pfauth, editor in chief

Three weeks ago we brought you the news about Reddit users making fun of Network Solutions’ domain front running. They checked domains like Networksolutionsisstaffedbyterrorists.com, which the service immediately registered. Although this was funny news, the problem itself isn’t. Last year, CEO and founder of GoDaddy Bob Parsons explained on his blog how big the problem is:

The domain name tasting and kiting industry is alive, well and running rampant. The practice of domain tasting and kiting continues to rage out-of-control. In February 2007, 55.1 million domain names were registered. Of those, 51.5 million were canceled and refunded just before the 5 day grace period expired and only 3.6 million domain names were actually kept. With the exception of just a few names, 93.5% of those names were registered simply to see how much advertising revenue – paid by big search firms like our “do no evil” friends at Google – will generate when they are associated with a one page Web site and related links.

As you can read, Parsons wasn’t really fond of the way Google made the practice of domain name tasting profitable. That will change now, and Google will gain some ‘do no evil’ points. Because the number one in online advertising will make it harder for the front running companies to show up in the search results. Over the next few weeks, Google will look up names that are repeatedly claimed and dropped in a five-day period. They will be excluded from the Adsense program, so that they won’t generate advertising revenue.

“We believe that this policy will have a positive impact for users and domain purchasers across the Web,” Google spokesman Brandon McCormick told to the Associated Press.

Fighting side-by-side with Google are Yahoo, Dell and BMW, who have filed federal lawsuits against domain name tasting companies that conflicted with their trademarks. It’s not hard to imagine that all these major companies will be able to ban out the shameless act of domain front running.

And to make the story even better, you can still have fun with the ‘mindless monkeys‘ at Network Solutions.

[WebTipr: David Petherick, United Kingdom]

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Deadpool, dell, domain name tasting, front running, godaddy, google, network solutions, yahoo

2 Comments »

Network-solutions-is-run-by-mindless-monkeys.com

Written on January 9, 2008 – 3:42 pm
Ernst-Jan Pfauth, editor in chief

Eleven hours ago, Reddit user geeeeoffff went to Network Solutions, a web hosting and domain company. Probably to host a domain or something. Yet, he found out that when he checked a domain on its availability, Network Solutions automatically registered it. This is what the, probably amazed, Reddit user posted:

REDDIT GAMES: this company registers any domain name checked. Lets search for long strings of random letters and numbers!!! over 20 characters long should do it. (networksolutions.com)

You can imagine what happens next: hundreds of Reddit users started checking the weirdest and offensive domain names. You want some examples? You’ll get some! Beware, some are not suitable for your cubicle:

Some are pushing it a bit far though. Yet this only shows what kind of consequences this script by Network Solutions has.

The guys from Network Solutions seem to be pretty fast, according to Geekner, who checked the domain Ipickedthisnamebecauseitiscompletelyrandomandhasnumbers2.com. “It went from available to taken by NS in less than a minute.”

What Networks Solutions probably does, is called front running. This November, Nominet published a position paper on this matter. Here’s their definition:

Domain Name Front Running (DNFR) is a technique believed to exist, but so far unproved, whereby one person monitors the activity of a second person who is planning to register a domain name and the first person then registers the domain name before the second person.

Network Solutions already reacted on the front running accusations. Jonathon Nevett, Vice President of Policy at Network Solutions rather calls it ‘a security measure to protect our customers’. Moreover, he says that they release the domains after four days.

Which means there are 3,5 days left for this domain…
Network Solutions