question SnapNames in cahoots with HugeDomains?

[uesues]

I'm interested in placing a backorder on a domain currently listed by HugeDomains that is set to expire in the coming months and that I am hoping they will opt not to renew.

DropCatch says that the domain is not available for backorder but not why. Is there a minimum or maximum timeframe for the expiration date of a backordered domain at DropCatch?

I also tried to place a back order with SnapNames. When I entered the domain, though, there is no option to place the backorder: instead, it gives me a "Buy it now" link with the HugeDomains price. I thought that domain backorder services were supposed to be operating independently.

Is SnapNames working with HugeDomains? Do they have an agreement not to list HugeDomains-owned domains in their backorder auction program? Is it possible that they will backchannel my interest in the domain to HugeDomains, making them more likely to renew? This whole business feels so shady to me.

I'm also considering setting up a GoDaddy backorder. I can't even check if they will consider the domain eligible until after I've paid them, though, so I'm nervous. Are their backorders shady, or is it worth a shot?

For background, the domain in question is just a family name that only a few families in the world use. It used to be associated with a family business, however that business now operates under a different domain (presumably after they forgot to renew and HugeNames took the domain). The current HugeDomains price is stratospheric. There's no way somebody is paying that for an obscure family name, which is why I'm hoping HugeDomains will let it drop.

I don't neeeeeeed the domain, so I can always hang around and submit backorders whenever expiry comes up, but I'm worried that will never happen if the backorder sites are communicating my interest in the domain to HugeDomains. Are there any additional precautions I should take? Thanks!

 

[Rich]

Dropcatch recently updated their platform, you used to be able to type the name into url like domain/PdfMenot.com but it's not working now unless in pending delete I suppose. I typed a huge domain into snapnames, it does seem they have a private seller account there as well..quite the pickle, maybe try alternative backorder services and a domain monitor if its dropping maybe youll be able to backorder at SN/DC at later date.

 

[uesues]

Thanks for the info! From what you're saying, it sounds like SnapNames is no longer a reputable service, and that I should not attempt to backorder from them. It's also worth mentioning that when I searched the domain on their service, they showed me two alternate domains as available for backorder that are definitely _not_ in their pending delete state. They are actively registered sites just like the one I was searching, except not owned by a domain reseller.

Would a good strategy be to wait and see if the domain enters the "pending delete" state and attempt a backorder if that happens? Are there any backorder services I should consider besides DropCatch and GoDaddy?

One other thing has me confused. When I checked the site that the domain points to several months ago, it was advertised as HugeNames, but when I check whois now, I'm seeing GoDaddy as the registrar. Does that mean GoDaddy registered on HugeNames' behalf, or is it possible that HugeNames traded the name to GoDaddy? I don't want to go to the actual site, because of course, that will make the owner more likely to renew the domain.

I guess my question is, does GoDaddy have a big advantage if a drop happens, and are they more reputable than SnapNames in terms of actually honoring the drop process (rather than using it as a means to advertise expensive resale options and/or backchannel domain interest to owners)?

Thanks again! I'm still new to this, it's a more complicated process than I expected to be, and it's hard to figure out who to trust. I'm willing to pay a few bucks for my name, but the current offering price is not realistic for a domain that has no business use.

 

[Rich]

Well Huge domains is owned by the the same company as Dropcatch and from what I've read in the past they use analytics like the more page views, inquiries, perhaps even whois queries will effect the price. I'm not sure why the domain would be at Godaddy unless it's sold or it's one of the many they've (huge domains) won at GD auction and didn't transfer out? Maybe someone has more info on what HG does with their GD auction winnings, I haven't bid much at GD auctions recently. GD backorders, along with name and dynadot have proven to be worthless if backordered at namejet, snapnames, or dropcatch. If you can set a reminder or use a domain monitor to be alerted close to expiry, you may be able to backorder in expired or redemption period. I'm just getting back into domaining and there may be more up and coming backorder websites if you do some research. maybe sav or hexonet

 

[Rich]

name will refund, dynadot you don't pay until caught, you can try to get a backorder refund from godaddy but i've been caught with backorder credits in the past.
who knows, you may find it under private seller at dropcatch if hugedomains has an account there and they look to liquidate inventory.

 

[lock]

Let go cahoots we can change the sheets.

 

[uesues]

Thanks! I'll take a look at Sav and Hexonet (and look back here) once the expiry date is closer.

I want to maintain radio silence on this domain for now, so it will remain a mystery as to who is actually holding the name. I checked a whole bunch of domains that are on offer from HugeDomains, and they are all registered with NameCheap either privately or with HugeDomains.com as the public owner, so I can't imagine why this particular domain is registered anonymously with GoDaddy.

There's a good possibility that it transferred ownership, because I don't see any evidence that SnapNames resells HugeDomains inventory. I checked a decent sample of the "Premium Partner" domains that SnapNames offers (you can download the whole list), and none of them are owned by HugeDomains. (Most go to a GoDaddy page with a "powered by afternic" logo at the bottom.

Does anybody know if that means that the name will go on GoDaddy's auction platform in the event that the current own chooses not to renew? I would be willing to bid a few hundred dollars to secure this name. The last I heard is that bids should be at least $200 to make sure the HugeDomain bot doesn't snipe the bid. I'd be willing to go even a bit higher than that if it guarantees me the name.

Guess I'll have to keep my fingers crossed for now.

 

[lock]

wrong thread.

 

[Rich]

There's a good possibility that it transferred ownership, because I don't see any evidence that SnapNames resells HugeDomains inventory. I checked a decent sample of the "Premium Partner" domains that SnapNames offers (you can download the whole list), and none of them are owned by HugeDomains. (Most go to a GoDaddy page with a "powered by afternic" logo at the bottom.
.

I just typed a random hugedomain into snapnames and it's listed by a private seller snapnames.com/domain/aapnews.com.action namejet and snapnames open their platform to large portfolio owners
you should be able to set a domain monitor in godaddy domain panel, not sure if auction membership is still required i think it's 5 bucks

 

[uesues]

Oh word, I should have checked that! Thanks.

Domain monitoring is a tempting option, but I don't know if I can trust GoDaddy not to backchannel my interest in the domain to the current holder (and make them more inclined to renew). I know I'm sounding paranoid, but a lot of this seems really shady to me. Has anybody had good experiences with the GoDaddy domain monitor? If it's a reliable tool, I'm happy to pay a few bucks for it.

As an aside, to anyone following along, do not attempt to set up a backorder at SnapNames before searching their "Exclusive Seller Domains" and "Premium Partner Domains" lists, which you can download in their entirety (so you don't have to signal interest in your particular domain). Frankly, you may want to avoid attempting backorders with them at all. They don't seem very trustworthy.

 

[Rich]

The only thing I'd worry about with monitoring is the frequentness of the whois queries and if huge domains factors that into any renewing algorithm. i used this one from tinymonitor.com but dont think its for sale anymore, maybe can find a free server side script you can setup intervals on, try github.
unfortunately snapnames and namejet are the only competitors to dropcatch.
namejet, networksolutions, snapnames, new venture warehousing have all been involved in shady business web.com probably overpaid and should mitigate before they embarrass themselves further.

 

[uesues]

Thanks again for all the help, Rich. The whois thing has me really worried. I would feel really let down if the organization that is servicing whois lookups is selling that data to resellers. Or even worse, if ISPs are intercepting the requests and reselling them. Unfortunately, this whole business seems shot through with bad actors . It's sad that my family name got caught up in it.

I have the current expiration data saved, so I won't need to do lookups of any kind. I'll mull over the GoDaddy monitoring option. It looks like GoDaddy has a concept of "premium domains," that you can't backorder/monitor. If they have an arrangement with HugeNames, then my name might be on that list somehow. (I have no idea why the asking price is so high. It's possible that the site is still getting traffic meant for the business that used to use it, but they moved on a long time ago, and if they haven't paid the current asking price by now, they never will.)

Anyway, I'm super interested in any and all perspectives on GoDaddy domain monitoring and/or their auction system. Stay safe everyone, and steer clear of SnapNames and HugeNames if at all possible.

 

[AEProgram]

This is related to SN/DropCatch

Anyone know the name xue shan qiu?

PM me if you are putting together a puzzle

 

[Rich]

Thanks again for all the help, Rich. The whois thing has me really worried. I would feel really let down if the organization that is servicing whois lookups is selling that data to resellers. Or even worse, if ISPs are intercepting the requests and reselling them.

That's just it, the registrars, Godaddy and namebright (same company who owns dropcatch and huge domains) have the ability to read/save whois queries on domains registered with them. GoDaddy used to have the readout in a CSV export but I don't see that option anymore. Doesn't mean it's not available to API account holders still. Namebright records so many then you have to pay for those past a given date. Who knows, ISPs could be tied in there as well in this age of big data. Best of luck

 

[Bob Hawkes]

I checked a whole bunch of domains that are on offer from HugeDomains, and they are all registered with NameCheap either privately or with HugeDomains.com as the public owner, so I can't imagine why this particular domain is registered anonymously with GoDaddy.

That is really interesting. I had presumed, never checked, that most would be registered at GoDaddy because their main accumulation vehicle seems to be GD auctions.

So why so many registered at Namecheap. I wonder if they have a special deal with Namecheap on registration, so the ones registered there have been renewed once. Just a theory.

I agree with advice to draw as little attention as possible to "looking into name" (e.g. WhoIs checks) to keep low the possibility of them keeping it. When we see number of WhoIs checks, e.g. Epik provide it in their control panel for all your names there, does that mean number of checks from aywhere, or only via their own whois, and is it last year or all time? Always amazed that even fairly obscure names seem to get checked quite a bit, so assume some bots do it regularly.

I hope you manage to catch it without paying too much!

Bob

 

[Rich]

That is really interesting. I had presumed, never checked, that most would be registered at GoDaddy because their main accumulation vehicle seems to be GD auctions.

So why so many registered at Namecheap. I wonder if they have a special deal with Namecheap on registration, so the ones registered there have been renewed once. Just a theory.

I agree with advice to draw as little attention as possible to "looking into name" (e.g. WhoIs checks) to keep low the possibility of them keeping it. When we see number of WhoIs checks, e.g. Epik provide it in their control panel for all your names there, does that mean number of checks from aywhere, or only via their own whois, and is it last year or all time? Always amazed that even fairly obscure names seem to get checked quite a bit, so assume some bots do it regularly.

I hope you manage to catch it without paying too much!

Bob

I would guess because namecheap domains are auctioned at godaddy, huge domains would keep them there but i don't remember ever getting login info at a competing registrar for auction wins at godaddy. I remember a couple from epik and name domains getting renewed but assume they would be ready in my godaddy panel after the auction lock/wait period. Perhaps purchases that predate the switch for namecheap expirations to godaddy.
Namebright lets you look at whois queries up to 30 days back without having to upgrade your domain for 10 dollars releasing feature to look at all whois history or up to a year, even says if query comes from distinct IP address. Godaddy used to display whois info an export file previous and present daily,weekly,monthly queries but i no longer see that option. There may still be a link to the classic domain panel floating around but I haven't looked into it.
I think the domain-holding registrar serves the info on incoming live whois queries so it's safe to say they can record checks from anywhere unless they're pulling from a cached version of domaintools or something. Please anyone correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[DomainVP]

So why so many registered at Namecheap. I wonder if they have a special deal with Namecheap on registration, so the ones registered there have been renewed once. Just a theory.

More than a theory for sure.

Huge Domains gets a deal on their registrations with certain registrars in addition to owning many registries themselves through their SnapNames property. So What costs US $8.89 to register/renew a domain they only have to pay the basic fees a registry would have to.

The great swindling of the domain aftermarket. Brilliant.

 

[uesues]

Damn, if this doesn't get shadier and the shadier the more I learn about it. Of course, it should have occurred to me that the domain registrar is the one servicing the whois request, so they can provide that info to their customers. Hopefully what little checking in to this name I have done gets lost in the noise of bots and web crawlers. I do wish I could use GoDaddy's monitoring product with confidence that they won't go behind my back and provide _that_ data to HugeNames. They don't give me a sense that they have very clean hands, though.

Regardless, it's pretty new to the market, so there's a good chance it will get renewed either way. I'll probably have to play the waiting game for a few years, but the domain has to churn out eventually. The most important thing to me is that HugeNames doesn't make any money by effectively ransoming my family name.

 

[golan]

I'm interested in placing a backorder on a domain currently listed by HugeDomains that is set to expire in the coming months and that I am hoping they will opt not to renew.

DropCatch says that the domain is not available for backorder but not why. Is there a minimum or maximum timeframe for the expiration date of a backordered domain at DropCatch?

You're searching in wrong place. If HD is really gonna drop this domain, it will appear in Pre-Release section of DropCatch. So you need to monitor there, not any other place.

 

[uesues]

According to the DropCatch blog, their pre-release auction is for domains that were registered at NameBright but not renewed. My name is registered with GoDaddy now, so I assume it will go up for auction there if it does not get renewed. I'll keep an eye on the DropCatch pre-release as well, though. Thanks.