Quick Question About Domain Names

cellcom · 02-13-2010, 10:40 PM

I apologize in advance if this topic has already been answered -

I have an important question and cannot seem to find a definitive answer.

Lately I have seen quite a few sites being sold on Flippa (and elsewhere) that use the names of popular sites/products in the name (like Twitter).

I know google does not allow you to use google in any domain name, but is that always the case ? for instance (this is just an example) if I had a Twitter related ebook, can I register a name like thebesttwitterebookever.com or is it always impossible to use the other "popular/known" domain in your domain name ??

I hope this makes sense, and thanks in advance for your help.

InternetMarketingIQ · 02-13-2010, 10:49 PM

When you use another companies TradeMark you are just fine... until you get caught. Just because people do it doesn't mean that they are doing it legally.

It's all about how much time, money, and effort the offended company is willing to put into defending their trademarks.

Clearly any site using another sites identifiable brand is not going to last.

mywebwork · 02-13-2010, 11:06 PM

Almost every large company has posted guidelines for the acceptable use of their brand name, in the case of Twitter you can find it here:

Twitter Support :: Guidelines for Use of the Twitter Trademark

I'd stay away from any site that contains a known brand name until you check the copyright holders policy on the subject.

Some allow variations of their name, for example WordPress does not encourage you to use the word "wordpress" in your domain name but accepts the the abbreviation "wp" and allows owners of existing domains with the word "wordpress" in them to keep them as long as they use a "wp" domain name and forward the traffic (and only promote the "wp" domain name).

WordPress › About Domains

So always check first - it will save a lot of trouble with companies that can hire much better lawyers than you can!

Bill

mikeyman120 · 02-14-2010, 02:01 AM

One thing you have to watch out for is that the seller on say flippa may be trying to unload the trademarked domain because he already received some kind of cease and desist order to stop using it and now they just want to unload it and make a few bucks.

I would stay away from trademarked names. Come up with something creative yourself. For example I have a Clickbank site that is for newbies who want to learn twitter. Clickbank wouldn't approve it because it had twitter in the 3 word domain so I registered a new domain and replaced the word twitter with tweeter and I was back in business.

Mike

cellcom · 02-14-2010, 02:23 AM

Hey Mikey - that is exactly what I was concerned about as well - very good advice!

02-13-2010, 10:40 PM	#1
cellcom HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Posts: 392 Thanks: 25 Thanked 29 Times in 24 Posts	Quick Question About Domain Names - Can You Do This ? I apologize in advance if this topic has already been answered - I have an important question and cannot seem to find a definitive answer. Lately I have seen quite a few sites being sold on Flippa (and elsewhere) that use the names of popular sites/products in the name (like Twitter). I know google does not allow you to use google in any domain name, but is that always the case ? for instance (this is just an example) if I had a Twitter related ebook, can I register a name like thebesttwitterebookever.com or is it always impossible to use the other "popular/known" domain in your domain name ?? I hope this makes sense, and thanks in advance for your help.

02-13-2010, 10:49 PM	#2
InternetMarketingIQ Senior Warrior Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: US of A Posts: 2,190 Thanks: 47 Thanked 257 Times in 211 Posts	Re: Quick Question About Domain Names - Can You Do This ? When you use another companies TradeMark you are just fine... until you get caught. Just because people do it doesn't mean that they are doing it legally. It's all about how much time, money, and effort the offended company is willing to put into defending their trademarks. Clearly any site using another sites identifiable brand is not going to last.
	Internet Marketing IQ™

02-13-2010, 11:06 PM	#3
mywebwork Senior Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Honolulu, Hawaii, USA & Montreal Canada Posts: 2,218 Blog Entries: 1 Thanks: 759 Thanked 725 Times in 506 Posts	Re: Quick Question About Domain Names - Can You Do This ? Almost every large company has posted guidelines for the acceptable use of their brand name, in the case of Twitter you can find it here: Twitter Support :: Guidelines for Use of the Twitter Trademark I'd stay away from any site that contains a known brand name until you check the copyright holders policy on the subject. Some allow variations of their name, for example WordPress does not encourage you to use the word "wordpress" in your domain name but accepts the the abbreviation "wp" and allows owners of existing domains with the word "wordpress" in them to keep them as long as they use a "wp" domain name and forward the traffic (and only promote the "wp" domain name). WordPress › About Domains So always check first - it will save a lot of trouble with companies that can hire much better lawyers than you can! Bill

02-14-2010, 02:01 AM	#4
mikeyman120 Mike-Nagle.com War Room Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: NY, USA Posts: 986 Thanks: 180 Thanked 173 Times in 103 Posts Social Networking	Re: Quick Question About Domain Names - Can You Do This ? One thing you have to watch out for is that the seller on say flippa may be trying to unload the trademarked domain because he already received some kind of cease and desist order to stop using it and now they just want to unload it and make a few bucks. I would stay away from trademarked names. Come up with something creative yourself. For example I have a Clickbank site that is for newbies who want to learn twitter. Clickbank wouldn't approve it because it had twitter in the 3 word domain so I registered a new domain and replaced the word twitter with tweeter and I was back in business. Mike

02-14-2010, 02:23 AM	#5
cellcom HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Posts: 392 Thanks: 25 Thanked 29 Times in 24 Posts	Re: Quick Question About Domain Names - Can You Do This ? Hey Mikey - that is exactly what I was concerned about as well - very good advice!