Last year, we wrote about how the .TV registry which is owned by Verisign took back a expired .Tv domain placing it back on the registry reserve list rather than letting the domain name drop.
In that instance the domain name was G.TV and when we reached a representative about the take back of the domain we were told the registry had no plans to take back other expired .tv domain name other than the one character domain.
In the last few days another expired .tv domain was set to drop, but instead of allowing the domain to drop, the .Tv registry took the domain back.
The domain name is Auctions.tv and if you look up the whois today you will see it is now reserved by the. TV registry.
Domain Name: AUCTIONS.TV
Registrar: .TV RESERVED DOMAINS
Whois Server: not defined
Referral URL: not defined
Name Server: No nameserver
Status: SERVER-UPDATE-PROHIBITED
Updated Date: 08-apr-2012
Creation Date: 08-apr-2012
Expiration Date: 08-apr-2022
Auctions.tv was sold by the .Tv registry 2 years ago a branded auction of .TV registry owned domain names on Sedo.com for $5,000.
Now the same registry that sold the domain two years go, owns it again.
As you can image domain investor who play in the .TV drops are none too happy that this domain was not made available to the market but rather taken back by the registry.
Greedy Verisign, thanks for addressing this Michael!
Who owns .info because they do that an awful lot also…
Those Mother Fuckers.
Dirty. And Happy Easter To You Verisign.
Tony
the .info registry is operated by Afilias
http://www.afilias.info/
what .info domain names are you aware that were taken by the registry that were suppose to be deleted?
…and do any of you really thank that the new gTLD registries will be better? I foresee all sorts of inside deals going on there. All the more reason to stick with .com
Verisign have robbed the market for decades
Setting aside the issue of whether any registry should take back expired premium domains to their reserved list rather than letting them drop — and not to be picky and legalistic (although I’m about to be) — but VRSN does not ‘own’ the .TV registry as stated in your headline.
.TV is a country code TLD (ccTLD) and is owned by the government of the tiny nation of Tuvalu, which was lucky enough to get a ccTLD that has some considerable value in our video/streaming media age. VRSN manages the .TV registry for the government of Tuvalu, presumably under contract. VRSN apparently has the right to modify .TV registration policies but whether it does so in consultation with the government of Tuvalu, as well as who gets what portion of any resale price if an expired domain is placed on the reserve list and put up for premium sale again, are matters beyond my knowledge.
This is a good reminder that domains in ccTLDs — be it .me, .co, .uk, .de, or any other cc extension — are ultimately subject to the unilateral control of the government of the country that is their actual owner, and that ICANN has no say in the matter.
It’s also a good reminder not to let valuable domains expire. One has to ask who paid $5k for this domain just two years ago only to let it expire?
MHB,
I emailed the example of a registrar reserved that was supposed to delete .info.
Here are the policies for the .TV registry
http://www.verisigninc.com/en_US/products-and-services/domain-name-services/domain-information-center/additional-resources/tv-cc-domain-name-registration-policies/index.xhtml
@ Phil Corwin asked, “One has to ask who paid $5k for this domain just two years ago only to let it expire?”
I’m sure it was a proxy hired by Verisign to whom it doesn’t make a difference about the $5,000, because that is just $$ traded in the promotion of domain sales, to be used for domain purchases at auctions, to buoy the price of aftermarket domains, to increase the profile of domaining in the eyes of the world which is out of work.
To be honest I don’t see the problem. It’s not a MASSIVE domain and it does’t affect us in any way.
Verisign will probably collect some brandable domains, hold them for a while and put them up for auction in the future. When? Maybe when some new TLD’s like .Music or .Video are made available to the public. Auctions are a great tool to create a buzz, especially when the competition is rising.
Putting domains back into the vault just to piss everybody off doesn’t sound right. Verisign can’t afford to sit on the fence while all these other extensions/TLD’s are popping up. They have to adapt to the market.
Look at .Pro. They changed their restrictions a while ago. .TV did the same thing 2 years ago. These changes were HUGE for .TV domains and its owners. Anyone notice .TV reg fees are cheaper than .com these days? Verisign adapted to the market by making some much needed changes and it’s been nothing but a success for .TV. They can’t afford to take a few steps back now if they want the extension to survive in the future.
I am pretty sure Verisign is up to something, anything else just doesn’t make any sense.
PS: Just food for thought – This is not about greed. Verisign could have released the domain with a first year reg fee of $20,000 but they didn’t. Instead they’re probably giving it a year or so and letting the market decide the price when the domain is put up for auction with a few other premium domains.
.TV is near the top of the list for the NEW.DNS
People may want to start calling them 2-letter ASCII TLDs and drop the ccTLD charade
If you think you “own” a .TV domain or a .COM domain you better review that fantasy
In the NEW.DNS you will be able to hold your domains in your hands and show a judge in a court. Can you do that now ?
Louise
There is no way Verisign engaged in the buying of 1 $5K domain name.
According to DomainTools the owner of the domain our of the Sedo auction was Michael Bilyk of Kensington London
Verisign knows what is going on.
It is a shame leading domainers are not more aware.
People apparently like the ICANN (IANA) fantasies.
Any TLD that becomes “successful” will get **invited** to the next level.
OMFG may become the words heard soon as .COM and .TV domainers realize what is really happening. Verisign has no obligation to educate people.
Hint: Keep an eye on your wallet
i think is probably a “new” premium meaning when the sedo auction hit, this name moved from a high ANNUAL fee of say 2-5k PER YEAR to just a one time fee; and then a regular renewals. This was a GOOD move by the registry to get rid of the high premium renewals.
im guessing this name was repriced as a new premium on the drop, has been purchased by a new buyer but the whois is notoriously late on new premium buys- probably becuase its a higher than normal credit card fee.
i agree with the comment that the new TLD’s will be even worse when it comes to expireds, and even may bring about most-favored-nations to the deleted names process for .com and .net, probably in a compromise move where ICANn presents it as a win for dominer that verisng has got control of its drops.
thanks
page howe
dnstore.tv
Not too cool!
“ICANn presents it as a win for dominer that verisng has got control of its drops.”
==========
You can bet that ICANN in concert with Verisign will **spin** it all in their favor.
They both have contracts they value with the U.S. Government.
Most people are not even aware of the double standards or triple standards for legacy Registry Contracts. Look at the .US so-called ccTLD for some hints.
Also, consider the move **back** to the .COM Thick.Registry which existed before ICANN. Registrars will be screwed. They were an experiment.
The NEW.DNS moves the existing customer base to a new paradigm and the contracts fade away. It is only a matter of time.
Sometimes registries will reclaim domains that expire when they violate current registration rules, but are grandfathered in. For instance .ORG recently reclaimed some CC.org that dropped.
However, the registry reclaiming keyword domains is ridiculous.
They have already been paid once for it. It should be allowed to drop.
I am not a big fan of registries also playing the role of domainers.
Brad
@ MHB said: “Louise
There is no way Verisign engaged in the buying of 1 $5K domain name.”
Why not? I want to hide my head in the sand, too, but “schills” isn’t a term I invented. I’m not saying, but look at this guy’s dot tvs:
http://domains90210.com/sample-page/entertainment-2
Nice list! Color.tv sold at Godaddy auction for low xxxx, but never transferred. I call that testing the market.
56 Gloucester Road is a bunch of mail boxes.
Are you geniuses reg’ing “crowdfuding” domains? For better or worse, the law Obama just signed has added a new industry to this nation’s economy overnight.
I see “CrowdFundingClassActionLawsuit.com” is still available – that could be the most valuable of all the crowd funding domains.
This is hotter than the google glasses, or LLL.co’s…
@Louise,
So, what does that list of TV names suggest? Shocking, a domainer with a collection of TV names.
Let’s call Mulder and Scully and try to get to the bottom of this.
“Let’s call Mulder and Scully and try to get to the bottom of this.”
Why did an investor allow a $5,000 domain drop, SmartyPants? What’s the reason for that?
Would @MHB allow a $5,000 to drop?
You’re saying, @ MHB would allow a $5,000 domain he bought two years ago drop.
Your logic stinks.
Louise, who knows why the guy let it drop, but valuable names drop all the time.
The truth is out there.
Anyone interested in Senorita.tv, Senor.tv or GrimReaper.tv?
Recently signed “Crowdfunding” legislation will turn the U.S. economy into a version of the Roaring 20’s within 5 years. Over 2,500 news articles on Google News within the past 24 hours. Crowdfunding-Platform companies are popping up left and right:
ArcticIsland.com
LuckyAnt.com
Kickstarter.com
Bolstr.com
HyperFunding.com
The U.S. economy will grow at a rate never seen before, which means new companies and LOTS of domain sales. This is the time for which we’ve all been patiently waiting. Enjoy it.
Silicon Valley has taken notice. Dave McClure of 500 Startups’ calls AngelList “the single most important innovation in venture capital in the past five years.”
What domain does this Crowdfunding site use? Angel.co
http: // www. thecrowdfundingrevolution .com/
“Every extra bit of regulatory complexity is not only costly to American small businesses. It will also create an unfortunate “brain drain”. It’s very simple. If we make it hard for Americans to invest in crowdfunding, then entrepreneurs will tend to get funded with larger percentages of foreign money. Even worse, limitations on the amounts or percentages that Americans can invest in national crowdfunding, will force Americans to crowdfund invest overseas. Well, duh!”
Just grabbed crowdfundinggame.com – Boom!
Louise,
I am very uncomfortable with the following post you made:
——-
Why not? I want to hide my head in the sand, too, but “schills” isn’t a term I invented. I’m not saying, but look at this guy’s dot tvs:
http://domains90210.com/sample-page/entertainment-2
Nice list! Color.tv sold at Godaddy auction for low xxxx, but never transferred. I call that testing the market.
56 Gloucester Road is a bunch of mail boxes.
———-
First, I am the owner of Color.tv. Color was on auction on Godaddy in 2010. The auction closed at $1,500 WITHOUT meeting the reserve. Therefore, it DID NOT sell. I am not exactly sure what you are implying but I suggest that you do your homework before posting what appear to be defamatory comments which are wholly and completely inaccurate and unwarranted.
Thanks,
Claude
http://www.practicalecommerce.com/articles/3472-Equity-Crowdfunding-Is-Now-Legal-in-U-S-
@ Claude Dauman, I stand corrected, and I formally apologize. I watched the auction of color.tv, and thought it had been sold, and watched the whosis to see who bought it, but it never changed, so I ascribed something improper in the auction.
sponge bob: All the more reason to stick with .com
Doesn’t Verisign have the dot com contract too?!
L.
Verisign does have the .com contract but the terms of the contract are different.
let wait for verisign starting ripping off .com and .net and who forget about .cc’s