Domain name expired...

[Koldov]

Hi All,

 

Just need a bit of advice really!

 

Sad story is our domain name expired and although it's something that is handled by finance/admin, I told them it was expiring but it wasn't acted upon.

 

Now it's NOT a huge loss - we don't have a website on it, no hosting or email attached. Funnily enough it may have been a legacy thing, as before I started working for the school it may have been a website and I think they had exchange (but now it is only the name of our internal Domain!).

 

The 'whois' search gave me the registrant name, that a Google search then showed is in the expired domain name business that does drop-catching.

 

So all I can do I think, is go to the Domain host and register for a backorder? Contact the registrant and offer to buy it?

 

Has anyone here done that? Is it likely to succeed? Do these domain name drop-catching companies just hold on to them forever hoping someone will buy it for $$$$? Should I even care (although I obviously do, that's why I'm here asking)?

 

Kol.

[unixman_again]

When this happened to us at the first school I was at, we just registered another domain. We went from blahblah.org to blahblah.org.uk.

 

I've just checked on the original domain name and the Russian who got it when it expired has let it lapse. Maybe I'll register it and sell it back to my old school.

[Koldov]

Thing is I don't really understand the whole process much....

 

I've no idea why they have to expire, why someone else gets the chance to buy it or why there can't be some type of direct debit system that ensures your continued ownership until you decide you no longer want it?

 

I know there has been some major high profile drops that have been picked up by joe bloggs.... But surely the big domain names don't have to go through this rigmarole of remembering when it's about to expire and renew it every couple of years?

 

Kol.

[ZeroHour]

Well you have 30 odd days after the domain expires and becomes *offline* to renew using your current domain registrar, if you dont renew within that time it then gets put into a pending delete status and then you can retrieve it but for a larger charge, after a few days (I think 5) it then goes back into the pool and anyone can buy the domain.

Most registrars in the UK allow direct debit and almost all have the option to setup auto renew which means you dont have to worry, they will deal with it and all will email you in advance.