[sf-lug] sf-lug.net

[Rick Moen]

Quoting Justin Ryan (justizin at gmail.com):

> Do they want a registration fee, or, as Rick put it, "Ransom"?
> 
> If they'll authorize a transfer, I'd be glad to pick it up from
> another registrar, but it is not listed as available.

A number of Very Bad Things happen to a domain following it reaching the
expiration date.  The details differ by registrar.  What's _supposed_ to
happen 75 days after registration is release back into the general pool;
this sometimes happens, often not (ICANN's rules being spottily
enforced).  During the 75-day period, registrars often play money-making
games with the erstwhile registrant (owner) and others.

Registrar Network Solutions appears to be in the middle of this
games-playing period:  It gives speculator Snapnames.com control.  See
link below.

> Even very large organizations like ACM SIGGRAPH typically do not spend
> the $1k+ to litigate or bribe their trademarks back into play, and
> I've had clients pay for domains which they never regained control of.

You might find this to be interesting reading:  "Domain Expiration" on
http://linuxmafia.com/kb/Network_Other/