Larry,

You would say that, wouldn't you. Funny, I don't recall you being  
quite so critical of auDA when they handed you the au database on a  
platter.

Regards,

David Hooper


On 07/05/2008, at 2:35 PM, Larry Bloch wrote:
> Hi,
>
> Well, that?s a really odd story, Tony, because on a matter we have  
> had to deal with on behalf of a client auDA took the exact opposite  
> view ? they deleted a name registered in to a new owner after an  
> error at the registry and gave it back to a previous owner  
> (apparently the previous owner did renew, but due to the registry  
> issue, the name was not renewed and lapsed).
>
> The new owner had spend considerably on the site and the old owner  
> didn?t even know his name was no longer registered to him.
>
> The reality: auDA makes up the rules on the fly. And the rules they  
> make up are based on what?s easiest for them, not what is sensible  
> or appropriate.
>
> In your case a mistake by a registrar results in a new owner keeping  
> the name. In our case a mistake by the registry results in the new  
> customer losing their name.
>
> Lazy, sloppy, inconsistent all spring to mind. They are a very  
> unfunny, self perpetuating, overpaid joke.
>
>
> Regards,
>
> Larry
>
>
> From: dns-bounces+larry.bloch=netregistry.com.au§dotau.org [mailto:dns-bounces+larry.bloch=netregistry.com.au§dotau.org 
> ] On Behalf Of Tony Owen
> Sent: Tuesday, 6 May 2008 3:54
> To: .au DNS Discussion List
> Subject: Re: [DNS] Bad experience with auDA RE Domain Central,  
> Bottle Domains, Explorer Domains and their holding company  
> Australian Style Pty Ltd
>
> Hi,
>
> I've been asked to explain my previous post .. so here goes:
>
> I had a website designing.com.au, I used the website for my Tafe  
> students as a resource site for their classes.
>
> The registrar 'accidently' gave my account details including my  
> password to a third party who changed the email address on the  
> account.
>
> designing.com.au came up for renewal, the emails went to the 3rd  
> party ... I didnt realise it had expired until it was too late (it  
> had been picked up on the drop)
>
> AUDA have suggested I accept an offer by the registrar of a the cost  
> of 12 months registration (ie the free reg of a new name) and seem  
> to accept the situation.
>
> I have been looking for a replacement name, but they seem to be  
> snapped up before I get the 'expired domain list' from my new  
> registrar ....
>
> So I have a double beef .. losing a name that I valued highly (we  
> now are a fulltime web design business) and the fact that it is  
> virtually impossible to grab an expored domain because they are  
> snatched up before my reigstrars drop list is published.
>
> AUDA should investigate any instances of domains being registered  
> before the drop lists are published, and see if the same company is  
> getting them all, not too mention taking stronger action against  
> registrars who 'lose' domains for their customers.
>
> Cheers Tony
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Tony Owen
> To: .au DNS Discussion List
> Sent: Sunday, May 04, 2008 3:53 PM
> Subject: Re: [DNS] Bad experience with auDA RE Domain Central,  
> Bottle Domains,Explorer Domains and their holding company Australian  
> Style Pty Ltd
>
> Good luck with your endeavours,
>
> I have contacted AUDA with concerns about dropped domains being  
> snapped up, they simply told me unless I had concrete evidence  
> (which of course would be nigh on impossible to get) they would not  
> even look at the situation, and then hung the phone up on me.
>
> Cheers Tony
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Paul Moore
> To: dns§dotau.org
> Sent: Sunday, May 04, 2008 2:23 PM
> Subject: [DNS] Bad experience with auDA RE Domain Central, Bottle  
> Domains,Explorer Domains and their holding company Australian Style  
> Pty Ltd
>
> Hi,
>
> In correspondence with auDA, it was revealed to us that they know  
> that the domain name registrars they accreditted, Domain Central,  
> Bottle Domains and Explorer Domains, are reregistering the domains  
> of their customers to themselves, by the thousands, as auDA said to  
> us they had received DOZENS of complaints around the subject from  
> other businesses who like us lost their domains and websites to and  
> through these outfits. Let me repeat myself: I informed auDA of an  
> abusive situation (explained below) and they advised us that they  
> know of, and have known of the issue for quite some time; that  
> several of their accreditted registrars are reregistering for  
> themselves their customers dot com dot au (.com.au) domains whenever  
> the customer forgets/neglects to renew them.
>
> The registrars are refusing to give the domains back to their  
> rightful owners stating that they themselves as "Australian  
> businesses" are equally as entitled to register domains as any other  
> business conducting ecommerce in Australia.
>
> auDA has done nothing, and is doing nothing about this improper  
> conduct. These Australian registrars are misusing their priveldged  
> position and conducting insider trading to scoop up thousands upon  
> thousands of peoples dot com dot au (.com.au) domains that were not  
> renewed in time.
>
> THE BACKGROUND TO OUR ISSUE
> We accidentally forgot to renew, within a ludicrous "90 day renewal"  
> period, some of our highly descriptive dot com dot au domains that  
> we had registered some 6 years earlier to point at our main website.  
> These weren't just random domains. They were common dictionary words  
> that received highly qualified leads that generated a significant  
> amount of sales on our main website. These leads came through the  
> domains because the domains describe desirable items that people  
> type directly into their web browsers followed by the dot com dot au  
> suffix, like " email.com.au". Since people directly "type-in" these  
> domains it makes them valuable. This "type-in" phenomenon is called  
> "direct navigation" and is the main reason we beleive our domains  
> were targeted by the Australian domain registrar holding company  
> "Australian Style Pty Ltd".
> Australian Style Pty Ltd reregistered our domains within minutes of  
> their release to the public, but not to us! They reregistered our  
> Australian domains to themselves and refuse to give them back!
> When I realised our oversight in neglecting to renew our domains a  
> "90 day renewal deadline" had passed by a couple of hours only so  
> that our domains were already in a "ServerHold, ServerRenew and  
> ServerUpdate Prohibited" status. Thus our domains were still  
> registered to us but could not be renewed due to the status they  
> were in. We were informed that they were due to randomly become  
> available to the public on a "first come, first serve" basis. We  
> were told "there is nothing we can do except you can try to  
> reregister them once the registry has released them."
> Of course the night that followed was near sleepless pondering what  
> chance we had to reregister our prized domains before another could.  
> I came to the conclusion our chance was 100 per cent because how on  
> earth could anyone except our domain registrar, "Aus Registry" (the  
> maintainers of the Whois database) and auDA (the ".au" domain suffix  
> regulator) know that our domains were expiring!!?
> I was confident in the conclusion that we would be able to  
> reregister our domains back because some Australian domain investors/ 
> developers (a.k.a. domainers) explained on a domain forum that they  
> would buy dot com dot au domains but cannot because of the  
> restrictive policies and that none of the expiring domain name  
> services (SnapNames.com, NameJet.com, Pool.com) provide information  
> on the dot com dot au domains that will become available as the  
> expiry information on all dot com dot au domains is PUBLICLY  
> UNAVAILABLE and AusRegistry has an "IP (Internet Protocol) address  
> lookup restriction" in place on the Whois database that restricts  
> people from looking it up more than 20 times per day! So no one,  
> except an insider, could be privy to the fact our domains were  
> expring. In other words it is IMPOSSIBLE for the public to learn the  
> expiry date of dot com dot au domains.
>
> LETS SEE WHAT HAPPENS NOW
> I was extremely disapointed in auDA's innaction and reaction to our  
> loss. I demanded to know what actions they had undertaken since they  
> received the first similar complaint and what actions they planned  
> to take regarding the conduct relating to the documented abuse and  
> misuse of customer records and Whois database information theft by  
> some of the registrars they accredditted to stranglehold peoples  
> domains.
>
> We tookup this issue with auDA as they are the self governing  
> industry body who oversees dot com dot au domains so it is their  
> duty to do the right thing by the public. They did not, and are not  
> fullfilling their role!
> Well, to our discust, our questions and issues have still not been  
> resolved. In fact, the issue has been swept under the carpet, and to  
> this day (months later) auDA is continuing to allow the above  
> mentioned registrars and their related enterprises to WAREHOUSE  
> thousands upon thousands of dot com dot au domains. Thus I am now  
> posting this open letter in this public forum to demand to know why  
> auDA is continuing to allow "Australian Style Pty Ltd" (the holding  
> company of *three* auDA accredited registrars Domain Central, Bottle  
> Domains and Explorer Domains) to reregister for themselves the  
> domain names of their former customers and to hold them hostage  
> while MONETIZING them to display paid links by Google? There is no  
> doubt in my mind these extortionist registrars will soon turn around  
> and sell these thousands upon thousands of warehoused domains back  
> to the market when auDA's new reselling policy is formulated this  
> coming June 2008!
>
> It is sickening that auDA is allowing their registrar partners to  
> rape the Australian domain suffix. Something should be done to stop  
> this abusive, racketerring-like conduct and misuse of a priveldged  
> position of trust to literally 'steal' Australian domains from their  
> former and rightfull owners.
>
> I hope that those of you who agree with us will follow through in  
> demanding that auDA respond to and satisfactorily address this  
> important issue.
>
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