Contacting companies directly - Allowed?

[cliff]

So, I just had a domain appraised by a fellow NP member (seen here) and discovered that a lot of companies use the keywords "All In One PC", so why not offer them my domain, allinonepc.com. Is this something that can legally be done by emailing the companies? Is this a common practice for domain sellers? If you have any advice or tips in this area, please help a n00b out.

 

[devyl]

That's a good question, as i've seen some wii (nintendo's next gaming console) .com's going for $X,XXX. I admit, i've got a couple as well, plus some wellknown brand .com's that could be sold to the company...

 

[Luc]

Yes, this is legally OK in your case cliff UNLESS the company you are emailing owns the trademark for the term "All in one pc" or "Allinonepc".

Devyl, in your case if you e-mail NINTENDO telling them you want to sell them a domain they own a trademark for they can take you to court. Also, they'll surely get the domain from you free of charge through WIPO process.

So, it's ok on domains that are NOT trademarked and/or those that are extremely generic.

 

[cliff]

Thanks, Luc. It looks like I'm safe... The TM is dead.

Word Mark ALL IN ONE PC
Goods and Services (ABANDONED) IC 009. US 021 023 026 036 038. G & S: computers, computer hardware, computer peripherals, integrated circuits, semiconductors, and computer chips
Mark Drawing Code (1) TYPED DRAWING
Design Search Code
Serial Number 75546968
Filing Date September 2, 1998
Current Filing Basis 1B
Original Filing Basis 1B
Published for Opposition July 27, 1999
Owner (APPLICANT) Acqis Technology, Inc. CORPORATION CALIFORNIA 1320 Miravelle Avenue Los Altos CALIFORNIA 94024
Attorney of Record Linda G. Henry
Disclaimer NO CLAIM IS MADE TO THE EXCLUSIVE RIGHT TO USE "PC" APART FROM THE MARK AS SHOWN
Type of Mark TRADEMARK
Register PRINCIPAL
Live/Dead Indicator DEAD
Abandonment Date November 22, 1999

 

[DreamWeb Designs]

^^^ could you link me to the site you got that info from? Doesnt it have searches for company names that are availabe/taken also? I think ive seen it before.

Thanks

- Robb

 

[cliff]

^^^ could you link me to the site you got that info from? Doesnt it have searches for company names that are availabe/taken also? I think ive seen it before.

Thanks

- Robb

It may... here is the link I used:

http://tess2.uspto.gov/bin/gate.exe?f=searchss&state=6nhobp.1.1

 

[jeffjaybiz]

Yea, I agree. Basically, if the name's trademarked; All you're doing is putting igt out in the open for them to get it for free. If it's not, then go for it.

 

[GreenGambler]

Yes, this is legally OK in your case cliff UNLESS the company you are emailing owns the trademark for the term "All in one pc" or "Allinonepc".

Devyl, in your case if you e-mail NINTENDO telling them you want to sell them a domain they own a trademark for they can take you to court. Also, they'll surely get the domain from you free of charge through WIPO process.

So, it's ok on domains that are NOT trademarked and/or those that are extremely generic.

This is Good advice....

Also don't just e-mail the "all in one PC' companies e-mail every freakin PC company e-mail you can find.

Be short, to the point and very polite. Also no bulk e-mails, make it feel personal and use your real name and e-mail.

 

[cliff]

Thank you for all of the advice. I just want to make sure, but I should NOT list a price in my letters/emails, correct? I should ask them to make offers via my SEDO listing, right?

Any other TO DO's or NOT TO DO's I should be aware of? Thanks!

 

[Ronald Regging]

Also in the case of the Trademark you did find, even if it was live, they wouldn't have much claim to your domain, because the TM type was a drawing... It's important to learn the different types of trademarks as well.

Another note... If you're emailing companies directly, ask for an offer directly. Theres no need to direct it through Sedo, because that only means you end up having to pay Sedo a 10% commission. If someone is interested in the domain, they will make an offer for it. I don't think having it listed on a free site makes it any more appealing or legitimate to them. While Sedo is definitely a nice place to list your domain, the idea is for them to bring sales to you. If you do all the work yourself, why would you want to pay them a commission?

 

[cliff]

While Sedo is definitely a nice place to list your domain, the idea is for them to bring sales to you. If you do all the work yourself, why would you want to pay them a commission?

Good point... Plus if one of the "bigger name" companies wants to buy it then it's probably safe to bypass SEDO/Escrow services.

 

[Ronald Regging]

PayPal has protection upto $1000... Anything over that you might want to use Escrow.com. Sedo sales just seem to take forever to process and transfer and I've heard some bad stories about them in general. I've also had some bad experiences with them. They are a good company that provides a good service, but if you're selling on your own, theres just no reason to go through them.

 

[dotnom]

Using SEDO : Usually the time the buyer pays and the amount of the sale may delay the money transfer to your account. My experience with them was ok. Up to 12 days from the time of final agreement to the time the money were on paypal account. From the moment the buyer paid, Sedo ask you to push the domain to their account at the registrar you host your domain

I didn't use Escrow.com for domains yet
How do they verify that the seller transferred the domain ?
I was reading their terms that they look the whois info but this info can be cooked. Any info ?