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Domain Sniped on Launch Day

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Re: Domain Sniped on Launch Day

#41

Post by TrueGeek »

politelemon wrote: post #40
tuoret wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How is it not unethical to grab a domain you don't need and had no intention of buying until you learned someone else was interested in it? Especially since it usually involves extorting money from the would-be buyer. I fully agree you need to buy the domain as soon as you name your project, and that's where this person went wrong, but that doesn't make domain sniping any more ethical.

Completely agree. GP might be mixing up legal with ethical, which is quite common. The grabber's actions were performed intentionally, in bad faith.

There is no evidence that the person who bought the domain name in bad faith. The blog post is suggesting that someone is literally scraping GitHub and buying the domain name of every single public repo.

The MUCH more likely scenario is that someone simply thought of the same name and bought it.

Re: Domain Sniped on Launch Day

#42

Post by DeathArrow »

>"I believe someone scraped this name and stole the domain."

I believe it is a bit harsh accusing someone of theft because he registered a domain before you did or doing some action before you did. Merely having an idea doesn't give you the right to a property before you pay for it.

Let's suppose I have found my dream home and I take my wife out for dinner and talk loud about why is that house wonderful, why does it have a huge potential and how I've talked the owner into making a nice discount. I brag loudly about how that house is almost a steal.

Because I have some things to do at work, I will be able to speak with the real estate agent in one or two weeks, only to find out it was sold to the gentleman sitting on the next table in the restaurant.

Should I go to the police and open a theft complain?

Of course, domain scrapping and squatting has some gray moral areas but are not against the law.

When I have an idea I like, I go register the domain first. Even if I will not pursue that idea further. At worst I will lose 5 to 10 dollars. At best I will make something out of it. Or I can even sell the domain along with my idea to someone else who might want to use it.

I don't search the domain names using registrars or various domain tools. I only use Whois services I trust and I usually buy the domain short time after that.

Re: Domain Sniped on Launch Day

#44

Post by DeathArrow »

I do have an idea which might work against squatting. Write a script to flood domain registrar and online domain tools with searches and make the squatters pay for tens of thousands of useless domain names.

Re: Domain Sniped on Launch Day

#45

Post by DarkWiiPlayer »

electroly wrote: post #4

"Sniped" makes it sound like they did something wrong, but they didn't. I reject the idea at the end that there were ethical lines crossed. You need to buy your domain when you name the project, not when you release it. If you don't have the domain then you don't have the name. Buying the domain is naming it. Take the lesson for next time.

Nope. It is sniping and it's a dick move. You have the name whenever you decide that's what you're calling the project. Registering a domain name for it is only a matter of hosting.

And yes, interferring with someone else hosting their project is wrong. If you don't want a domain for yourself, don't buy it. Messing with people makes you a dick and trying to buy something only to re-sell it makes you a parasite.

Domain squatting, shoud this have been the intention here, is obviously also wrong and often used for illegal activity.

There's just no world where this person doesn't have a right to complain because clearly they are the victim of someone else being a dick.

Re: Domain Sniped on Launch Day

#46

Post by [deleted] »

danielheath wrote: post #10
electroly wrote: post #4

"Sniped" makes it sound like they did something wrong, but they didn't. I reject the idea at the end that there were ethical lines crossed. You need to buy your domain when you name the project, not when you release it. If you don't have the domain then you don't have the name. Buying the domain is naming it. Take the lesson for next time.

Watching folks build something, seeing them prep to launch it, then buying the domain in response to that (in the hope that they'll pay more for it)? Totally legal (and IMO should be!), but anyone doing that is absolutely crossing an ethical line.

[deleted]

Re: Domain Sniped on Launch Day

#47

Post by quietbritishjim »

TrueGeek wrote: post #41
politelemon wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Completely agree. GP might be mixing up legal with ethical, which is quite common. The grabber's actions were performed intentionally, in bad faith.

There is no evidence that the person who bought the domain name in bad faith. The blog post is suggesting that someone is literally scraping GitHub and buying the domain name of every single public repo. The MUCH more likely scenario is that someone simply thought of the same name and bought it.

> The blog post is suggesting that someone is literally scraping GitHub and buying the domain name of every single public repo.

I think you are severely underestimating how often this sort of behaviour happens.

Re: Domain Sniped on Launch Day

#48

Post by LinuxBender »

danielheath wrote: post #10
electroly wrote: post #4

"Sniped" makes it sound like they did something wrong, but they didn't. I reject the idea at the end that there were ethical lines crossed. You need to buy your domain when you name the project, not when you release it. If you don't have the domain then you don't have the name. Buying the domain is naming it. Take the lesson for next time.

Watching folks build something, seeing them prep to launch it, then buying the domain in response to that (in the hope that they'll pay more for it)? Totally legal (and IMO should be!), but anyone doing that is absolutely crossing an ethical line.

Totally legal

Even if it steps on a trademark?

Re: Domain Sniped on Launch Day

#50

Post by iteratethis »

DeathArrow wrote: post #42

>"I believe someone scraped this name and stole the domain." I believe it is a bit harsh accusing someone of theft because he registered a domain before you did or doing some action before you did. Merely having an idea doesn't give you the right to a property before you pay for it. Let's suppose I have found my dream home and I take my wife out for dinner and talk loud about why is that house wonderful, why does it…

Your housing analogy is incomplete and inaccurate.

Imagine that I overhear you wanting that home but I front run you. Not because I also love that house, I just buy it because I heard you like it and so that you can't have it. I don't do anything with the house. I don't live in it. I don't consider the house to have any value other than you wanting it.

That's not the same thing as 2 home buyers appreciating hot property.

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