Your domain name is the address for your website, and the way that your customers access your online presence. We, as one of the leading web design consultancies in the UK, cannot stress how important it is for you to make sure that the registration of your website is kept up to date and renewed as and when required. Whilst we know that you and our valued clients are happy to take our word for this, it just so happens that there’s been another high profile case of a global brand not remembering to renew their domain name.
Many of you will recall the incident late last year which saw Google – very briefly – lose ownership of the Google.com domain. Whilst that story had a happy ending for both Google and the person who briefly took ownership, the same cannot be said of TP Link. An almost identical situation has affected them as was the case with Google, but at this stage it would not seem likely that it shall have as quick or as good an ending.
TP Link is one of the biggest sellers of home routers and Wi-Fi access points in the world today. It came as quite a surprise to many when the company did not renew two domain names that were used extensively for their Wi-Fi services, in particular with respect to security. When the registration for them lapsed they became open for anyone to legally register. This is exactly what has happened, and it is believed that they have put a price in the millions on them should TP Link wish to buy them back.
One of the biggest mistakes we have sadly seen many people make is the assumption that the domain name they use is theirs for life. This is not the case. The registration must be renewed if you wish to keep it. Should you not complete the renewal within three months of the expiry date it is accepted that this means you no longer wish to use it. If that’s not the case, as TP Link can testify it can be quite an expensive exercise to get it back.
As Nominet members our comprehensive services include the registration and renewal of domains. Although Nominet contact the registered owner of a domain to remind them of expiration, we monitor this for the clients we provide hosting services to. We don’t want to see any of our valued customers risk losing their domains and so do all we can to make sure you keep your registration up to date.