Sorry to edit this out, guys...

[Diemenz]

Originally Posted by Swarly

I don't think this is underhanded or dirty pool at all. By now companies/entrepreneurs should know to register a domain, it is one of the most important things in setting up a business even if it is basic and mostly just lists other contact info, if they don't you can do whatever you want with the site.

Have a friend buy it and put up some random sh*t, i'm thinking like the homepages we used to make 12 years ago, random gif's, cool text, flashing seizure-causing backgrounds. If they ever do come after you (your friend?), which I doubt they know enough to ever find the person who owns the site seeing as they are in this situation now, it should be a simple matter of handing ownership of the site to them.

This is what got him in trouble in the first place. Almost everything in your post is wrong. When you buy a domain name you don't just send them a envelop of cash with the name Jburger on it, all your information is recorded. The company will find you and will hold you responsible.

Once a company has a trademark on a product, service or company the domain registry laws prohibit any individuals not associated with said company from registering a domain name under that trademark.

I am all for these laws, if a trademark protects your name on signs, print, radio and television why should the www be any different?

[zamler]

Originally Posted by Red-Mile-DJ

I would have kept it. It's your competition. Anything you can do to get ahead of them is only a good thing for you. You don't get too far being nice. Very cut throat out there.

Edit: if your competition is dumb enough to not get the domain, in the first place, they aren't much of a competition.

It doesn't matter how "dumb" your competition is, cybersquatting is not legal. If Microsoft forgot to pay their domain bill (this happened actually) and you registered microsoft.com do you really think you would get to keep that domain, let alone profit from it?

[PsYcNeT]

Originally Posted by zamler

It doesn't matter how "dumb" your competition is, cybersquatting is not legal. If Microsoft forgot to pay their domain bill (this happened actually) and you registered microsoft.com do you really think you would get to keep that domain, let alone profit from it?

Devil's advocate, depending on the country you/the company are/is located in, it's dependant on whether they have their name/product/service trademarked or not.

[pylon]

The bottom line is this. A good business can being extremely successful on the merits of good products and service, not cheating the system. If someone is willing to cheat the system to get a leg up on his competition, what does that say about the service you can expect? Is he going to deny a grey area warranty claim or break a contract... by gaming the system, instead of doing what's right? You did the right thing sliver. And this is coming from a guy in the most competitive business out there. It was like in the pre-internet days my folks would never do business with companies like AAA-AARDVARK carpet cleaning, because they were just looking for a loophole to get to the top of the yellow pages, instead of actually relying on reputation.

[zamler]

Originally Posted by PsYcNeT

Devil's advocate, depending on the country you/the company are/is located in, it's dependant on whether they have their name/product/service trademarked or not.

It usually depends on the registrar, not the country the business resides in. Just because you live in North Korea doesn't automatically give you free license to go out and snatch up domain names of successful companies and profit from it. The rightful owner of the domain name will simply put in a dispute with the registry service and very likely get their domain back in short order.

In disputes arising from registrations allegedly made abusively (such as "cyber-squatting" and ?cyber-piracy"), the uniform policy provides an expedited administrative procedure to allow the dispute to be resolved without the cost and delays often encountered in court litigation. In these cases, you can invoke the administrative procedure by filing a complaint with one of the dispute-resolution service providers.

[DuffMan]

Originally Posted by Sliver

I noticed a competitor hadn't registered his domain name (.com and .ca). I bought them,

My dog would never do that.

[Sliver]

Originally Posted by DuffMan

My dog would never do that.

With the context back in (to keep the record straight):

Originally Posted by Sliver

I noticed a competitor hadn't registered his domain name (.com and .ca). I bought them, felt guilty, so cancelled my purchase all in the span of minutes.

[afc wimbledon]

Originally Posted by zamler

It doesn't matter how "dumb" your competition is, cybersquatting is not legal. If Microsoft forgot to pay their domain bill (this happened actually) and you registered microsoft.com do you really think you would get to keep that domain, let alone profit from it?

While I don't think you should be allowed to use a trade marked domain name unless you own the trade mark I see nothing wrong with buying it, either to hold onto to make life more difficult for your competition (no different than scooping up a peice of property in the real world that you know your competition wants) or selling it back to them for a profit.

Thats just capitalism

[onetwo_threefour]

Originally Posted by DuffMan

My dog would never do that.

Mine would, she's a bitch!

[zamler]

Originally Posted by afc wimbledon

While I don't think you should be allowed to use a trade marked domain name unless you own the trade mark I see nothing wrong with buying it, either to hold onto to make life more difficult for your competition (no different than scooping up a peice of property in the real world that you know your competition wants) or selling it back to them for a profit.

Thats just capitalism

It's completely different.

[TheSutterDynasty]

Relevant:

http://sidneycrosby.com/

[afc wimbledon]

Originally Posted by zamler

It's completely different.

how?

[zamler]

I would hope you would know the difference between a real estate purchase and using a registered name that does not belong to you. So you can buy a building and slap a big sign on the front that says Microsoft? You should try that and see what happens.

[valo403]

Originally Posted by zamler

I would hope you would know the difference between a real estate purchase and using a registered name that does not belong to you. So you can buy a building and slap a big sign on the front that says Microsoft? You should try that and see what happens.

There are obviously different legal issues, but ethically I don't see the difference.

[PsYcNeT]

Originally Posted by zamler

I would hope you would know the difference between a real estate purchase and using a registered name that does not belong to you. So you can buy a building and slap a big sign on the front that says Microsoft? You should try that and see what happens.

Registered as in it's a government-registered business, or registered as in it has a registered trademark in the country of the registrar?

Those things make a big difference.

[zamler]

Originally Posted by PsYcNeT

Registered as in it's a government-registered business, or registered as in it has a registered trademark in the country of the registrar?

Those things make a big difference.

Explain how this would make a big difference in a domain name dispute.

Originally Posted by valo403

There are obviously different legal issues, but ethically I don't see the difference.

But you thanked a post that didn't know the legal differences.

[PsYcNeT]

Originally Posted by zamler

Explain how this would make a big difference in a domain name dispute.

If you don't own a trademark on your brand, anyone can co-opt it. It's pretty simple.

But you thanked a post that didn't know the legal differences.

His post was about the morality of co-opting a non-trademarked brand/name, his comments didn't even touch on the legality of it.

[valo403]

Originally Posted by zamler

Explain how this would make a big difference in a domain name dispute.

But you thanked a post that didn't know the legal differences.

No I didn't, I assumed he was talking about it from an business ethics standpoint. For all we know he was.

[zamler]

Originally Posted by valo403

No I didn't, I assumed he was talking about it from an business ethics standpoint. For all we know he was.

He's talking about both, although his post directly contradicts itself.

While I don't think you should be allowed to use a trade marked domain name unless you own the trade mark

I see nothing wrong with buying it, either to hold onto to make life more difficult for your competition

This is the same thing as USING it. You are using ownership of said domain name not belonging to you for profit.

(no different than scooping up a peice of property in the real world that you know your competition wants) or selling it back to them for a profit.

It's not the same thing, not even close. Buying a piece of property is fair game, as it should be.

[afc wimbledon]

I was talking from a purely ethical standpoint, havnt a clue about the law, but if the law protects people from their own stupidity in this I am appaled, a domain name is a thing you can buy, I can go out and buy 10,000 VW car emblems, as long as I don't stick them on some look alike car I am making it is legal,
It's VW's problem if they subsequently run out of emblems, why the hell should they be then allowed to come and sue me to get my stock of emblems?