Domain Name Advice Needed (Experts Only)

[BFR]

Q1 - Is it necessary to buy all (or at least the TLDs) for your website?

Why I Ask - Almost everywhere on the web, (so-called) domain experts say that it is necessary for a business to register all the TLDs to secure their business online. Okay, point noted. But, when I did a check whether these companies have bought the other domain extensions, I was surprised to find out that they aren't bothered. For example, .in, .net or .me, are available! In some cases, .co even!

Examples include:
Network Solutions
Copyblogger
NewRainmaker
WPMUDev

**Companies I'm talking about are considered experts in their own fields**

Q2 - Is it necessary to buy the new ICANN-era gTLDs?

Why I Ask - In most cases, the rest of the domain extensions (Country code top-level domains and ICANN-era generic top-level domains) are available. Is it necessary to buy those? Some haven't, while Google, Yahoo, Microsoft and Facebook has bought them all.

Examples include:
BigRock
Siteground
WordPress
Icann
Wikipedia

Q3 - When I have a business name registered (say Example, Inc.), then do I become entitled to the following:

a) ownership of example.com
b) stop anyone else from using example.[__] (other domain extensions?)

Thanks for taking the time to read such long questions. I'll will appreciate your reply.

 

[DU]

I'm not an expert but I'm answering anyway. Don't put that in the title, it's a forum and anyone can and should answer. You will ultimately learn more from idiots than experts anyway.

Q1. No, but if you are a business it's worth the $100/year to save the hassle of dealing with idiot domainers (com/net/org/tv/info) etc.

Q2. No. Huge companies have more money and can affort it (cheaper than lawyers). Huge companies also have more idiots targeting them on alternative extensions. Huge companies have more customers that can be confused by phishing attacks etc.

Q3. No - your domain name entitles you to the benefits of mapping an ip address to that name. It is not a TradeMark.

 

[SHAHENAZ SHAFI SHAIKH]

I'm not an expert but I'm answering anyway. Don't put that in the title, it's a forum and anyone can and should answer. You will ultimately learn more from idiots than experts anyway.

Q1. No, but if you are a business it's worth the $100/year to save the hassle of dealing with idiot domainers (com/net/org/tv/info) etc.

Q2. No. Huge companies have more money and can affort it (cheaper than lawyers). Huge companies also have more idiots targeting them on alternative extensions. Huge companies have more customers that can be confused by phishing attacks etc.

Q3. No - your domain name entitles you to the benefits of mapping an ip address to that name. It is not a TradeMark.

Very Good

 

[Asfas1000]

Q3. No - your domain name entitles you to the benefits of mapping an ip address to that name. It is not a TradeMark.

I think the question was a bit different..

 

[BFR]

I think the question was a bit different..

That's why my subject says "Experts Only". This information can't be google-d out.

 

[BFR]

I'm not an expert but I'm answering anyway. Don't put that in the title, it's a forum and anyone can and should answer. You will ultimately learn more from idiots than experts anyway.

Q1. No, but if you are a business it's worth the $100/year to save the hassle of dealing with idiot domainers (com/net/org/tv/info) etc.

Q2. No. Huge companies have more money and can affort it (cheaper than lawyers). Huge companies also have more idiots targeting them on alternative extensions. Huge companies have more customers that can be confused by phishing attacks etc.

Q3. No - your domain name entitles you to the benefits of mapping an ip address to that name. It is not a TradeMark.

Thanks for your replies. What you said makes sense. But, I still think my questions are only half-answered. Sorry, no offence to you.

 

[DU]

Thanks for your replies. What you said makes sense. But, I still think my questions are only half-answered. Sorry, no offence to you.

No offense taken.
I don't see how 3 Yes / No questions can be half answered but I'll let the experts handle it from here out

 

[carob]

No, No, No.

 

[BFR]

No offense taken.
I don't see how 3 Yes / No questions can be half answered but I'll let the experts handle it from here out

The point in case is much deeper than you think. Read my questions closely, and check the domain availabilities. I'm a geek, one among the strangest species on the planet.

 

[carob]

Why I Ask

Are you asking these questions to protect your own brand? Or to work out how to make money from domains?

There is no substitute for reading up on how trademarks work and how they apply to domain names - you have to put in the time.

 

[BFR]

Are you asking these questions to protect your own brand? Or to work out how to make money from domains?

There is no substitute for reading up on how trademarks work and how they apply to domain names - you have to put in the time.

To protect my own brand of course.

 

[Kate]

There is no simple answer. But if you can demonstrate TM rights (a registered TM is not required) you will be able to prevail in disputes, whatever the TLD. Defending a brand always costs money. UDRPs are not free. Lawsuits are not free. Domain registrations are not free.

PS: you might want to have a look at the TMCH (trademark clearing house).

 

[enlytend]

Q1 - Is it necessary to buy all (or at least the TLDs) for your website?

No. The only reasons to buy additional extensions is to 1) Protect against type-in traffic "leak" (which will be miniscule to nonexistent for most) or 2) To keep people from squatting on your brand. Minimizes legal fees and hassles later.

Why I Ask - Almost everywhere on the web, (so-called) domain experts say that it is necessary for a business to register all the TLDs to secure their business online.

The domain registrars certainly encourage people to register all the TLD's ...

As for the others, if that's the key message you're taking away from their sites you need to step back a bit ...

Q2 - Is it necessary to buy the new ICANN-era gTLDs?

Absolutely not. Waste of money. Why did Google/Yahoo/MS/FB etc buy them? See above about "save on legal ..." They're almost certain to be used to infringe on those famous marks, a little prevention is easier than tracking them down and getting the domains later through legal means.

Most site owners would never have those concerns..

Q3 - When I have a business name registered (say Example, Inc.), then do I become entitled to the following:

a) ownership of example.com
b) stop anyone else from using example.[__] (other domain extensions?)

Neither. If you get a TRADEMARK on your business or product name, then you may be able to stop someone from using that name in a domain for the same class of goods and services your trademark is registered for after you have established your use in commerce.
Nothing entitles you to the .com.

In other words, this is the long version of what Carob said:

No, No, No.

 

[BFR]

There is no simple answer. But if you can demonstrate TM rights (a registered TM is not required) you will be able to prevail in disputes, whatever the TLD. Defending a brand always costs money. UDRPs are not free. Lawsuits are not free. Domain registrations are not free.

PS: you might want to have a look at the TMCH (trademark clearing house).

Thanks for the answer. I'll have a look. It never hurts to explore more when it's your business. :D

 

[BFR]

No. The only reasons to buy additional extensions is to 1) Protect against type-in traffic "leak" (which will be miniscule to nonexistent for most) or 2) To keep people from squatting on your brand. Minimizes legal fees and hassles later.
The domain registrars certainly encourage people to register all the TLD's ...
As for the others, if that's the key message you're taking away from their sites you need to step back a bit ...
Absolutely not. Waste of money. Why did Google/Yahoo/MS/FB etc buy them? See above about "save on legal ..." They're almost certain to be used to infringe on those famous marks, a little prevention is easier than tracking them down and getting the domains later through legal means.
Most site owners would never have those concerns..
Neither. If you get a TRADEMARK on your business or product name, then you may be able to stop someone from using that name in a domain for the same class of goods and services your trademark is registered for after you have established your use in commerce.
Nothing entitles you to the .com.
In other words, this is the long version of what Carob said:

Haha. But thanks for getting into the details. I wanted to know how this stuff works. You answered almost everything. Thanks again!

 

[alien51]

I have built a perimeter fence around several of my brands myself. As mentioned by others, this is to protect against both squatters, sitters, and legit competitors who want to use the same brand name. Although .COM is king, i have a couple of competitors who genuinely rooted their own business on a .NET and .ORG.

If you are a brand owner, one of the annoying things you want to see on Google search, is your domain sitting next to its identical twin even if it carries a different extension. I have a stay-at-home mom operating her parenting tips blog using the .NET version of my .COM brand which is an online store for a sports apparel. Although what she is doing is perfectly fine, her blog appears to have gained some fans and is now ranking on the same keyword as my sports apparel store. I don't own a trademark (yet), and it would seem brutish to wish her blog would die because it's confusing my audience. But for the price of just 9 bucks, i could have prevented this issue beforehand.

My perimeter fence only extends up to .NET and .ORG. I don't bother with the others like .BIZ or .INFO, because i think those extensions are damaged enough that most people would find domains using those extensions as dubious and spammy. Nevertheless, for brand owners who use money for toilet paper, buying all the extensions to preserve their brand from shady people, is cheap expense.

Google prioritizes ccTLDs for local searches. It gets complicated when another business is using the ccTLD version of your branded .COM. I have several .COM keyword domain brands that are also being used by others in their own country ccTLDs like .CO.UK, .MY. and .AU and running their own business. If you are a small or midsize business operating in Florida, you probably would not care much about a competitor using the same identical brand on a local extension in Malaysia. But obviously for big names like Facebook, that's a serious issue.

Another thing is if you are selling digital goods, or maybe you are running a website catering to anyone in the world who cares. Then that means even if you are not as big as Facebook, you would have wanted to block out the domain grabbers on the ccTLD that might rank on top on their own local search results.

But of course, your wallet cannot possibly buy and sustain all the ccTLD defensive regs. So you just have to let it go and stick with the com net org. But Facebook and Google have boatloads of money, so there's the difference. But the motive is the same.

And lastly, getting a Trademark puts a stamp of legitimacy on your branding claims. But buying defensive regs can be a lot cheaper option that eliminates many hassles that may include contacting your trademark lawyer and filing lawsuits and UDRPs here and there.

 

[Name Trader]

Answers to none of these questions, will do much to protect your brand. They can only do, as alien51 has so adequately described above. If you want to protect your brand, you need to file for a trademark for your brand. At the going rate of about $1k (if you don't want the hassle of doing it yourself), to file an application, I think it's very reasonable price to protect your brand. But then you obviously have the additional costs involved in actually protecting your brand. I think alien51 has outlined quite a good strategy of protecting your brand through the use of domain registrations/acquisitions. You simply prevent squatters from having the opportunity, to infringe on your brand with most of the popular gTLD's, which could extend to some ccTLD's, if you think it's worth the addition costs. Of course it's not 100% fool-proof. But then neither is a trademark.

 

[BFR]

I have built a perimeter fence around several of my brands myself. As mentioned by others, this is to protect against both squatters, sitters, and legit competitors who want to use the same brand name. Although .COM is king, i have a couple of competitors who genuinely rooted their own business on a .NET and .ORG.

If you are a brand owner, one of the annoying things you want to see on Google search, is your domain sitting next to its identical twin even if it carries a different extension. I have a stay-at-home mom operating her parenting tips blog using the .NET version of my .COM brand which is an online store for a sports apparel. Although what she is doing is perfectly fine, her blog appears to have gained some fans and is now ranking on the same keyword as my sports apparel store. I don't own a trademark (yet), and it would seem brutish to wish her blog would die because it's confusing my audience. But for the price of just 9 bucks, i could have prevented this issue beforehand.

My perimeter fence only extends up to .NET and .ORG. I don't bother with the others like .BIZ or .INFO, because i think those extensions are damaged enough that most people would find domains using those extensions as dubious and spammy. Nevertheless, for brand owners who use money for toilet paper, buying all the extensions to preserve their brand from shady people, is cheap expense.

Google prioritizes ccTLDs for local searches. It gets complicated when another business is using the ccTLD version of your branded .COM. I have several .COM keyword domain brands that are also being used by others in their own country ccTLDs like .CO.UK, .MY. and .AU and running their own business. If you are a small or midsize business operating in Florida, you probably would not care much about a competitor using the same identical brand on a local extension in Malaysia. But obviously for big names like Facebook, that's a serious issue.

Another thing is if you are selling digital goods, or maybe you are running a website catering to anyone in the world who cares. Then that means even if you are not as big as Facebook, you would have wanted to block out the domain grabbers on the ccTLD that might rank on top on their own local search results.

But of course, your wallet cannot possibly buy and sustain all the ccTLD defensive regs. So you just have to let it go and stick with the com net org. But Facebook and Google have boatloads of money, so there's the difference. But the motive is the same.

And lastly, getting a Trademark puts a stamp of legitimacy on your branding claims. But buying defensive regs can be a lot cheaper option that eliminates many hassles that may include contacting your trademark lawyer and filing lawsuits and UDRPs here and there.

You're like a PRO. Thanks for the advice.