GoDaddy bullying tactics
keith smith
klsmith2020 at yahoo.com
Fri Aug 17 16:57:54 MST 2007
In their second email they said I need to sign an agreement. So I replied with my fax number and asked they fax it to me. I just got the fax.
It makes me attest that I own the domain and all rights to it and have the authority to sell it. Sounds like common stuff so no one can come along and make a claim. It also says they recognize I have rights and authority as to the domain ownership.
I think I am going to seek counsel and hold onto my domain in the mean time. After all the good advice I have gotten it is becoming obvious they might be trying to pull a fast one on me.
Joshua Zeidner <jjzeidner at gmail.com> wrote: Keith,
( IANAL, TINLA )
If I were you I would just contact a lawyer. A good trademark lawyer would know how much the domain is worth to them. He/she may even buy it from you. Although I am not really qualified to dispense legal advice, I would think that doing something like putting content on the site at this point may reflect poorly on you in a court situation. I think you want your actual case to be clear, that you didn't obtain the domain to cause market confusion with GoDaddy. GoDaddy does not own the rights to the word 'Go' and 'Daddy' and you have every right to start a business called GoDaddyBBQ, GoDaddyBailBonds, GoDaddyThaiTakeout, etc.
My opinion is similar to Josef, it gets me angry when large companies think they can bully around people by making demands on them that they forfeit their assets. And Josef, you're welcome for the link. Etoy is great!
In summary, the domain may be worth more than you think. It would cost GoDaddy at least $3K to take you to court over it (probably far more as this is a very cutting edge area). Can't hurt to call around. The fact that GoDaddy is giving you a 'deadline' to me shows they are trying to get you to make an impulsive decision.
-jmz
On 8/17/07, keith smith <klsmith2020 at yahoo.com> wrote: Thanks for your advise. I think I will add some grill stuff in the next day or two. I never intended to compete with GoDaddy, nor did I ever intend to put anything on GoDaddyGrill that would be remotely like what GoDaddy does or sells. I thought it would be a nice affiliate BBQ website.
Bryan O'Neal <BONeal at cornerstonehome.com > wrote: The really question is do you want to keep it and use it as you
originally intended, or sell it to some one who may try to get some
major cash out of the deal, or have no interest in it and purchased it
on a whim, but would likely have let it laps any way. (I purchased a
bunch of ASU oriented names a while back, but just let them laps when I
decided I wasn't going to do anything with them).
If it is one of the first two, decline their offer and put up a
temporary, crude grill site. If it is the last choice truly fits with
your desire, take the deal. If you put up a grill site, so you do not
appear to be a squatter, then your perfectly safe.
-----Original Message-----
From: plug-discuss-bounces at lists.plug.phoenix.az.us
[mailto: plug-discuss-bounces at lists.plug.phoenix.az.us] On Behalf Of
Josef Lowder
Sent: Friday, August 17, 2007 9:12 AM
To: Main PLUG discussion list
Subject: Re: GoDaddy bullying tactics
.
On Thu, 16 Aug 2007, Josef Lowder wrote
> On 8/16/07, keith smith wrote:
> > I have no intention of fighting them. I am going to release the
> > domain to them.
>
> Keith, I would definitely *NOT* be too quick to capitulate on this.
>
> GoDaddy does *NOT* own all rights to the use of the words "go" and
> "daddy" in every possible application of those words.
>
> On the contrary, you are at no risk to take the full 10 days (and
> probably a lot longer) to consider your options on this.
>
> You can obtain a copy of their trademark registrations and in all
> probability, the Patent office has no doubt required them to
> *disclaim* any claim on the use of the dictionary words "go" and
> "daddy" except in a very specific and limited use of those words as
> part of a very specific mark.
>
> I'll write a little more on this shortly, but wanted to send this note
> to you right away so you don't do anything foolish to hastily.
Thanks to Joshua Zeidner for providing the wikipedia link that briefly
summarized some info about the "etoy war" that established a very
significant precedent regarding domain name ownership. At the end of
that recap there is a link to a New York Times article describing how
that dispute came out. I would urge reading it:
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/00/01/cyber/articles/26etoy.html
Just a few quite remarkable points in that article:
* Although eToys holds a trademark for its name and the [etoy] artists
have yet to get one for theirs, trademark-law experts were skeptical
that eToys could prevail ...
* the mission of etoy ... did not overlap with eToys' efforts to sell
Barbie Dolls and Furby Babies.
* To end the dispute, the toy retailer offered to acquire the artists'
domain for more than $400,000 ... The [etoy] group declined, saying that
amount was insufficient.
While I am not a lawyer, and not trying to pretend to be one, if I were
you, I would definitely not capitulate to GoDaddy's weasely ruse,
attempted subterfuge, and subtle bullying tactics in this.
The fact is that you "own" this domain name (and it's rather ironic that
you even registered it with them three years ago). So, as long as you
pay the annual renewal fee, that domain name belongs to you and you
should have every right to use it for any purpose that does not directly
compete with or undermine GoDaddy's business.
The thing that really rankles me and should everyone else is that
arrogant, presumptuous last line in GoDaddy's email message giving you a
*deadline* to "... transfer the domain name to GoDaddy within 10
calendar days."
How dare they?
You expressed a concern that if you did not capitulate to them, they
might pull some dirty trick like shutting down your other websites that
are hosted on GoDaddy servers.
It is incomprehensible that they might try something that foolish and
open themselves up to being pounced on by every ambulance chasing lawyer
in the world scrambling for the opportunity to go after them for mega
bucks.
As you well know, domain names are now called the new real estate, and
they really are, in a sense, like real property with tangible value.
So, if you just don't want to mess with this any further, one other
option you might consider would be to offer to sell this domain to
someone else who might be more inclined to acquire it as an investment
property.
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PHP Programming
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