According to the latest statistics (Dec. 2001), the number of domain
name registrations expiring is 2,250,000 per month.
What happens to these domains when their registration expires? They
go back into the pool of available names and are available for
registration to anyone willing to pay the fee (typically no more than
$35 per year, and sometimes less than $10). The vast majority of these
domains are allowed to expire for a good reason (they are worthless)
and are never registered again.
However, occasionally an active domain is accidentally allowed to
expire because renewal slipped through the cracks, the underlying
business folds, etc. These domains retain some value for something
called "link equity," i.e. existing links (on other Web sites) to the
expired domain.
These domains become the target of some shady companies known as
"traffic aggregators." Most of the aggregators which have sprung up are
located in former Soviet Republics. They buy existing sites which may
have some value in link equity and then redirect the incoming Web
traffic to other domains, usually gambling or porno sites.
Organizations as diverse as the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra and
the government of Holland have seen their expired domain names
appropriated by traffic aggregators. Some abandoned Mac sites have also
fallen prey to the aggregators. Visited the Conflict Compendium, Mac OS
Gamer, or UpgradeStuff lately? You probably don't want to anymore. They
are now, how shall I say this, not exactly what you would expect.
Among the agencies that have received email from irate surfers
complaining about links to web sites that have "gone bad" are the
United Nations and the U.S. Department of Education.
Currently, a domain is available to be registered by anyone as early
as the day after it expires, or, in some cases, after a 5-day hold. The
Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has
proposed a 30-day hold on expired domain names prior to resale. The
theory is that if someone neglects to renew their domain and does not
notice that their Web site fails to resolve for 30 days, they probably
don't want it that badly. This 30-day waiting period should eliminate
most of the expirations which are due to oversight.
Protect Your Domain
The legal waters in these cases are murky, to say the least.
Although some legal precedent exists stating that companies,
organizations, and individuals do have some protection against having
their names and/or registered trademarks registered by those who would
try to profit from it. This practice is called "cyber-squatting."
However, it is a different story when it comes to a domain name
which was registered and has expired. How the courts would rule in such
a case is anyone's guess. Pay attention to those "domain expiration"
notices and make sure your email address is current with your domain
registrar.
Just how big a problem is this? It has been addressed twice in the
last week on Applelinks (Dead
Mac Sites Spawn Porno Portals and Expired
Domains Grabbed by Porn Sites). It was also a front-page story in
the March 4, 2002, issue of Network World (Lurid
Links). 
Editor's Note: If you find such a link on
Low End Mac, please contact <
>. Be sure to include the
redirected domain name and the address of our page linking to that site
so we can correct or remove the link. Thanks!
