Hi, I does sound like they are making money on defensive registrations. I thought that was frowned upon. avri On 16-Mar-15 12:32, Carlos A. Afonso wrote: > Do we consider this type of scam when some (most?) of us defend absolute > freedom for creating new gTLDs? > > --c.a. > > -------- Forwarded Message -------- > Subject: [ PFIR ] Extortion runs wild on .sucks gTLD > Date: Mon, 16 Mar 2015 08:28:08 -0700 > From: PFIR (People For Internet Responsibility) Announcement List > <[log in to unmask]> > Reply-To: PFIR (People For Internet Responsibility) Announcement List > <[log in to unmask]> > To: [log in to unmask] > > Extortion runs wild on .sucks gTLD > > ".sucks" registrations begin soon--at up to $2,500 per domain > > (Ars): > http://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2015/03/sucks-tld-to-accept-sunrise-registrations-soon-but-theyll-be-pricey/ > > The number of generic top-level domains (gTLDs) available for use has > climbed into the hundreds, and ".sucks" will soon be added to the > list. However, angry customers eager to get their hands on > brand-specific domains like "bestbuy.sucks" or "comcast.sucks" > shouldn't get their hopes up; according to MarketingLand, the domains > will cost far more than most consumers will want to pay. The pricing > situation around .sucks domain names is complicated. Companies with > registered trademarks will have to pay an astounding $2,499 to > register their trademarked names in .sucks. Registration of > non-trademarked names during the "sunrise" period (March 30 until June > 1) before .sucks goes live will cost at least $199 per name, while the > standard registration fee after June 1 rises to $249 per name. > > Companies are typically hyper-sensitive about brand usage, and > few will want their .sucks domains under someone else's control. > The .sucks pricing scheme has led to outrage from many quarters, > with MarketingLand's writeup quoting several industry figures who > use words like "extortion" and "predatory." > > - - - > > This is one of the best examples I know of demonstrating how the gTLD > expansion has turned into one giant extortion scheme for the > enrichment of "domainers" and the rest of the domain-industrial > complex -- and to the detriment of the Net at large. As far as the > overwhelmingly vast majority of new gTLDs is concerned, I've seen > nothing from them but spam and phishing attempts, and I block them > from my networks with zero sense of shame and without any obvious > detrimental effects here. Personally, I recommend that you do the > same. > > --Lauren-- > Lauren Weinstein ([log in to unmask]): http://www.vortex.com/lauren > Founder: > - Network Neutrality Squad: http://www.nnsquad.org > - PRIVACY Forum: http://www.vortex.com/privacy-info > Co-Founder: People For Internet Responsibility: > http://www.pfir.org/pfir-info > Member: ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy > Lauren's Blog: http://lauren.vortex.com > Google+: http://google.com/+LaurenWeinstein > Twitter: http://twitter.com/laurenweinstein > Tel: +1 (818) 225-2800 / Skype: vortex.com > > _______________________________________________ > pfir mailing list > http://lists.pfir.org/mailman/listinfo/pfir > > --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. http://www.avast.com