"Domain status: REGISTRAR-HOLD" (what's it mean)

[newyorkny]

Hi Guys,

Been waiting to grab a certain domain for some time. The company has long ago gone out of business which owned it, and none of the old principals has showed any interest in maintaining it (i.e. the emails are dead-lettered, their website's been down for donkey's years, etc)

So I bought one of those monitoring services. The record expired on 7July but I am still not able to get the domain.

The last update was:

The domain status has been changed:
OLD: ACTIVE
NEW: REGISTRAR-HOLD

The whois information still shows the old owners, and even that 7JUL expiration date. Doesn't make sense.

What does this mean, and how long can the registrar hold onto an expired domain without releasing it?? That doesn't seem fair that they can intercept it before it goes on the market.

Thanks, NY

 

[Wullie]

Hi mate,

The registrar normally will hold onto a domain after it has expired in case there was a mistake in letting it expire. The owner could be in hospital or any number of things.

Never trust a domain expiry date to mean it will be available to register if they don't renew.

Hope this helps

Wullie

Fresh Look - Quality Coldfusion Hosting

http://www.tutorial-world.com

The pessimist complains about the wind. The optimist expects it to change. The leader adjusts the sails. - John Maxwell

 

[grtfercho]

That happens all the time. My registrar would hold the domain for about 30-45 days before releasing it to the open again. Which is a beautiful thing cause I was out of the country with no access to a computer. The emails reminding me to update the record were going to a dead account and if they sent regular mail it was to the old address on the whois DB.

When I came back I was able to extent my domain registration for a couple more years.

just wait a while and keep a close eye on it.

grtfercho çB^]\..
"Imagination is more important than Knowledge" A. Einstein
-----------------------------------------------

http://www.llajta.com

 

[HemanSkeletor]

I wonder what the laws/regulations on how long they can hold a domain name are, if any.

Surely a registrar is precluded from keeping a valuable asset to itself at its own discretion -- it's a clear conflict of interest.

 

[grtfercho]

[off_topic] Wullie I just checked your website... very informative. I'm thinking of setting up my own server at home thanks to a tutorial I saw on your site.
Is there a forum here in tek-tips that deals with -at-home-hosting??
[/off_topic]

grtfercho çB^]\..
"Imagination is more important than Knowledge" A. Einstein
-----------------------------------------------

http://www.llajta.com

 

[Wullie]

Hi mate,

The Apache forum would be your best bet for any problems.

forum65

Hope this helps

Wullie

Fresh Look - Quality Coldfusion Hosting

http://www.tutorial-world.com

The pessimist complains about the wind. The optimist expects it to change. The leader adjusts the sails. - John Maxwell

 

[TruthInSatire]

I don't know if there are any laws... after all it's the registrar that owns the domain and they "rent" it to you. There is not finincal bennefit for them to keep it because then they can't rent it out again. I'm sure ICANN gives guide lines on that sort of stuff to maintain the ICANN acreditation.

Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so.
-Douglas Adams (1952-2001)

 

[danephillips]

Domain renewal is a pure pain in the ass.

I once lost a domain that was getting me
million of hits a year ....
Why did I loose it because the company would
not renew ....

The worst part of domain renewal is I have 30 +
domains and it is a nightmare keeping track of
renewals.I switch to godaddy.com because they auto-renew.

 

[newyorkny]

Interesting stuff, guys.

I am still waiting patiently for the domain.

As for the registrar's financial incentive to snap up the domain, the fact that they have a commodity that is worth some money on the open market is one incentive, especially if they are able to charge a premium for such a domain. If they are permitted to sell domains in the secondary market...in other words the premium domain aftermarket if you will, then they could make a killing just sitting on domains that have expired.

I am curious if there is a procedure to protest the homesteading this registrar is doing on "my" domain!

Thanks - NY

 

[Wullie]

Hi,

I beleive the recommendation is for a maximum of 60 days, however I would need to confirm this.

I am curious if there is a procedure to protest the homesteading this registrar is doing on "my" domain!

Firstly, it's not your domain and it is legally nothing to do with you unless you actually register it.

Also, just because you are watching the domain does not mean you would be the first to register it in the event of it becoming available, any other number of people could be watching it as well.

Hope this helps

Wullie

Fresh Look - Quality Coldfusion Hosting

http://www.tutorial-world.com

The pessimist complains about the wind. The optimist expects it to change. The leader adjusts the sails. - John Maxwell

 

[Foamcow]

They probably aren't "homesteading" it.
They are required to follow a certain procedure to allow for the current owner to renew it.
Given enough time (and it can seem like AGES) I am sure the domain will be available again.

http://www.foamcow.com

 

[tviman]

Foamcow is correct. I believe godaddy.com goes at least 60 days before releasing a domain name (and they give the current owner PLENTY of notice before it expires) to the public.

This is necessary in order to head off any legal issues with intellectual property rights (remember the madonna.com law suit?) or payment posting snafus.

And, as wullie also points out, you may, or may not, be the next person in line... Do a whois for just about any domain name and one of the first things you'll see is this domain is not available... but you can BACKORDER this domain for a fee....

So don't be surprised if you wake up one day and find that someone else owns the domain you've been waiting so patiently for...

There's always a better way. The fun is trying to find it!

 

[newyorkny]

Guys, I know it is not MY domain -- thus, the ""'s around the my, intended to convey the ironical or satiric nature of the statement.

I'd actually be fairly interested to learn that there was interest in addition to mine...we shall see, we shall see.

NY