Domain Name Parasites
I’ve had occasion to deal with domain registration sites several times in my life and every time, I’m left filled with anger and frustration.
I can’t say that I’m a huge fan of the sites themselves. They are a classic example of a service that has forced it’s way into being simply to make our lives more frustrating and to screw money out of us to boot. Agents that seem to offer a service to save us money and effort, but essentially take money from us for performing tasks we could easily carry out ourselves. But I feel that’s a subject for another day.
The biggest annoyance in this area is the parasites that buy up web domains with absolutely no intention of using them. I’m not talking about people like the guy that famously bought www.madonna.com and sold it on for a huge profit. They’re a one off. I’m talking about the arseholes that make a living out of buying up thousands of domain names for a few dollars each and then sell them on with a better than a 1,000% mark up. They are nothing less than criminals. Every comparable activity that concerns an actual physical item, be it actual money, concert tickets etc is viewed as illegal. Surely it’s time that this was too.
It’s the sheer calculated nature in which they log domain names that are being searched for and then steal them before you have a chance to get logged in and buy them yourself. Try it – visit such a site and search for something. When you find something that’s available, leave the site for a few minutes and then try again. 99% of the time the name will now be taken. It is disgusting that they get away with this. I have even contacted domain registration sites, alerting them of the parasites watching their sites like hawks … but all I ever get are generic “thank you for contacting us” emails back.
It seems to me that the registration sites could do something toward stopping this if they tried, but they don’t want to. After all, the parasites are buying up huge quantities of domain names every day. Not forgetting that the sites provide a service to the parasites, forwarding their details to anyone that tries to find a domain that’s in their posession. So, there’s another revenue stream for the registration site to take advantage of.
And so, the inevitable conclusion is reached: We’re being ripped off, and there’s nothing we can do about it. I hope that I’ve passed some of my frustration onto you. I can’t say that ranting about it has made me feel much better.
All I can advise is that, should you need to search for a domain name, get registered and logged in on the registration site of your choice before even running the search. Otherwise, you will end up paying at least $55 per year instead of $5.
MisterShouty 