One word .COM (Please have your say!)

Discussion in 'Appraisals' started by HelpMe, Dec 1, 2010.

  1. #1
    I own the domain altiyan(dot)com

    X factor tv show went to air in Australia recently. I registered this domain as I believed he would win the show and go on for a successfull career during the early stages when i realised it was available.

    Altiyan Childs continued to onlu recently take out the show, being crowned the X Factor WINNER.

    Therefore, I am wondering if my altiyan(dot)com domain name is now profitable?
     
    HelpMe, Dec 1, 2010 IP
  2. dcristo

    dcristo Illustrious Member

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    #2
    Would have been much better to have AltiyanChilds.com but Sony Music saw the potential in him before you did :) Glad he won it though.
     
    dcristo, Dec 1, 2010 IP
  3. HelpMe

    HelpMe Peon

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    #3
    I am wondering though what can i potentially do with this domain? Is it worth anything? I also own AltiyanChilds(dot)net? and AltiyanJuric(dot)com which is his REAL name? Could i sell stuff related to him on Altiyan(dot)com? Any advice would be appreciated.
     
    HelpMe, Dec 1, 2010 IP
  4. Cheat

    Cheat Peon

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    #4
    It's a trademarked domain, they can sue you if you build a website about Altiyan Childs.

    I suggest to ask them if they want to buy the domain. If they say yes, your lucky, if they say no then drop it.
     
    Cheat, Dec 1, 2010 IP
  5. HelpMe

    HelpMe Peon

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    #5
    How do you know it's a trademarked domain? A trademark registration takes roughly 8 months to process and be approved in Australia. Therefore it is not possible that this name is trademarked? A link to this info would be great.

    Cheat, which domain are you referring to? Altiyan(dot)com?

    I just did a search on Britney.com < store selling stuff related to britney spears???
     
    HelpMe, Dec 1, 2010 IP
  6. sarahk

    sarahk iTamer Staff

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    #6
    Its still cyber squatting and the big companies have shown us time and again that with good marketing they don't even need their branded domains.

    I'd create a tribute site to him, with a bio etc but the value will come from what you do with it.

    Oh, and I was pleased he won but thought Mahogany should have been in the final 3 and not Andrew Lawson.
     
    sarahk, Dec 1, 2010 IP
  7. dcristo

    dcristo Illustrious Member

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    Yeah, no idea why the public were voting for him. Pretty hard to be believable singing blues being so young. Was the Mahogany group from NZ?
     
    dcristo, Dec 1, 2010 IP
  8. sarahk

    sarahk iTamer Staff

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    #8
    Don't know where they were from. We only started watching from the episode where Altiyan did the Prince song and it took us forever to take him seriously because of that really, really bad first impression. Sally and Altiyan were in a class of their own though.
     
    sarahk, Dec 1, 2010 IP
  9. HelpMe

    HelpMe Peon

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    #9
    this is going way off track. I am after some professional advice. From someone who knows the exact answers to my questions. Please, someone help me!
     
    HelpMe, Dec 1, 2010 IP
  10. mjewel

    mjewel Prominent Member

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    #10
    In the US (and I believe Australia) there are common law trademarks - which means no filing is even necessary to establish rights.

    There are a number of factors against you, including:

    The mark is not common.
    I'm assuming you have no legitimate claim of usage (it's not your given name).
    You registered the domain only after it was in use (bad faith registration).

    I believe they would have a case for cybersquatting for just registering the name - but in any event, any attempt to use the domain in any way related to this person would almost certainly put you at risk for a lawsuit. If you made the site a bonafide fan site - and this means no advertising, no memberships, no donations for bandwidth, or any monetization of any kind - then you might be able to argue in court for "fair use". Of course, it makes zero sense to spend tens of thousands, easily six figures to argue this in court to keep a domain that can never make you a penny.

    You don't want to register domains to ride the goodwill established by someone else unless you have their express permission. You never want to try and offer to sell the domain to the company or individual (establishes a bad faith registration).

    I would suggest either dropping the domain, obtaining permission to use the domain as a monetized fan site (note: Bringing their attention to the registration can open the door for problems), or sitting on the domain without any related content in hopes they don't come after you. If you do decide to park the domain, also realize that if you run contextual advertising on the site (like adsense) and ads are displaying on it relating to the artist, it can be used against you as evidence you are profiting off of their established goodwill. I personally would just drop it and chalk it up as very cheap experience.
     
    mjewel, Dec 2, 2010 IP
  11. ustadogan

    ustadogan Member

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    #11
    Global Monthly Search 8,100 for altiyan
    so if i were you; install a wp site and wait for ads clicks.
     
    ustadogan, Dec 2, 2010 IP