.sucks (registry)

.sucks
Founded2015
IndustryDomain Registrar
URLwww.get.sucks

.sucks is an internet domain registrar company that controls the rights to sell .sucks domains.[1]

.sucks domain names

See also: ICANN § .sucks domain

.sucks domains are owned and controlled by the Vox Populi Registry.[2] Vox Populi won the rights for .sucks gTLD in November 2014.[3] Domains with .sucks names became available after the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers approved the generic top-level domain name (gTLD) in 2014 and assigned it to Vox Populi Registry Inc. in March 2015.[4]

Its primary use is apparently for domain hacks.

The number of registrations and renewals of .sucks domains appears to be declining as of 2018.[5]

Controversy

.sucks domains have generated controversy regarding potential cybersquatting, as individuals can purchase a trademarked domain with bad faith intent to sell the domain at an inflated price.[6]

Several celebrities and companies have purchased .sucks domains in order to protect their brands from potential exploitation, including Taylor Swift, Apple, Facebook, and Microsoft.[7][8][9]

As a result of the company's pricing model, .sucks has been criticized for high costs associated with trademarked .sucks domains.[10]

In 2015, ICANN sent a letter to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission to investigate Vox Populi Registry for potentially illegal and predatory actions.[11] The FTC concluded that Vox Populi did not break any rules, but pointed out that ICANN has previously ignored several concerns from the FTC on the topic of new domain names.[12]

References

  1. ^ "This Internet Address Costs 2500 Annually and It Sucks". Archived from the original on 2019-02-22. Retrieved 2018-11-01.
  2. ^ "Battles for .chat, .style, .tennis, bingo and .sas over". 6 November 2014. Archived from the original on 2014-11-09. Retrieved 2018-11-01.
  3. ^ "Dot Sucks Web Address". Archived from the original on 2018-11-09. Retrieved 2018-11-01.
  4. ^ ".sucks Registry Agreement". Archived from the original on 2019-11-05. Retrieved 2018-11-01.
  5. ^ "Rampant Span Falling Registrations Show New gTLDs Have Limited Business Value". Archived from the original on 2018-06-15. Retrieved 2018-11-01.
  6. ^ "Dot Sucks a Battle Between Trademark Rights and Free Speech". 18 February 2016. Archived from the original on 2019-02-13. Retrieved 2018-11-01.
  7. ^ "Why You Should Buy Your Dot Sucks Domain Name". The Guardian. 23 March 2015. Archived from the original on 2018-11-09. Retrieved 2018-11-01.
  8. ^ "Master of Your Domain Maybe in Com but not in Sucks". Bloomberg News. Retrieved 2018-11-01.
  9. ^ "Google, Apple, Facebook, Microsoft Along Major Brands Buying Sucks Domains". 7 April 2015. Archived from the original on 26 November 2018. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
  10. ^ "Saga of Sucks Domains Generates Laughter, Agony". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2016-11-26. Retrieved 2018-11-01.
  11. ^ "Internet Naming Body Moves Crack Down Sucks". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 2018-02-07. Retrieved 2018-11-01.
  12. ^ "FTC ICANN Sucks". The Register. Archived from the original on 2019-02-22. Retrieved 2018-11-01.

External links