The Brand Controller
So many stories have been circulating the web recently regarding companies who feel their brand has been invaded by someone who registers a similar domain name. For years, domain name registration companies like Domaincheck have been advising webmasters to secure multiple domains on various suffixes to secure their trademark, as the law is muddied as to what constitutes infringement.
Various high profile cases have been recorded on the subject of cybersquatting and domain name poaching, and many businesses feel being challenged on their right to register an open domain constitutes unfair competition.
On the other hand, there are some blatant attempts to attract website traffic by using popular brands, such as the recent case of an estate agent firm registering 30 domains associated with the popular social platform Facebook. Naturally, the Facebook team took legal action against the company, who it could be assumed expected to charge the billion-dollar company for use of the parked domains.
Advice to those embarking on an online venture is to stick to registering domains from companies who are members of recognised domain name controllers such as Nominet, like UK based company Domaincheck. Domaincheck also offer visitors to their website a chance to check the availability of variants on their desired domain using the domain name generator – a useful tool if you’re interested on seeing who already has control of what could be considered a slice of your brand.
Interestingly, Domaincheck are currently offering customers their domain name for free if they then take up website hosting, from as little as £20 + VAT. You can find out more at http://www.domaincheck.co.uk.
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