bought a domain and the record company is......

[shadowz]

sup everybody.....
i bought the domain name
http://raskass.com
and
http://rasskass.com

ras kass is a gold selling rap artist....and a new album is releasing so for promotion of his new album comign in august, his record company went to go buy the dot com.....

one problem is i already owned it.....now there tryin to sway me with 500 dollars n i know that aint nearly enuff whut this is worth.....
so i declined *****ing bout 500,000 copy selling artist is worth 500 dollars..blah blah expecting them to be gone n nothing of it n maybe to sell it years from now for alot more.....

but the next day i get this email.....

I suggest you build a site and a business based on that domain name... fast. We own rights to name AND likeness for Rass Kass and I have a lot more money and lawyers to TAKE the f**kin' domain name from you than you do to protect it..

I don't want hear sh*t about how you put more faith in our artist than we do.. whether or not we use .net vs. .com is NOT gonna be the difference in breaking this artist. If you knew sh*t about the record biz you might save yourself from sounding like such a moron. You don't have any faith in anything but putting some cake in your own pockets.

Know the law and quit talkin' sh*t.. f**kin' squatter.. My people will be in touch. The clock is ticking...


whut are my rights can they do this?
if so this is unjust for people trying to make some money buying domains and u got these xxxxxx dickheads threating me with legal issues....
im 16 and jus got on the net not to long ago, so this ish is vague someone enlighten me....

iight thanks

[Jason]

I don't think that you are actually dealing with a representative from that company, it sounds very much like someone is trying to steal your domain name away from you. So far they have threatened you and cussed you out in an unprofessional manner. Still, now would be a good time to use that domain name for a purpose so the real artist can't claim that you are merely holding on to his domain (which would be hard for him to do especially if you are not trying to solicit it to him).

At the very least, you have not been threatened with any real papers. I would not be too concerned unless this actually happened. People like this try to steal things away through intimidation.

[shadowz]

thanks........
and i was thinking the same thing....
but they gave me 2 contact #'s
and i even contacted the webmaster of
http://www.priorityrecords.com/
and he said this person is legit...

and i doubt the webmaster would lie, cuz your talking about a record company with about 7 muli multi selling platinum artists......

[TheKman]

I agree with Jason. But you should use the domain name for a legit purpose. I.e. a fan type site. Otherwise you can be accused of squatting and they will be able to take the name.

[JohnM]

Two things, I would hang on (maybe put a copy on disk) of any emails sent to you buy these guys, just in case you do have to go to court and, I agree with the other guys, put something on the site, maybe just use a automatic-redirect javascript to your forums, but put something on there.
As far as your rights go, you are alright unless you bought the dommain(s) just so that you could sell them to this guy. If you bought them for a legit purpose, then you're in the clear.

[shadowz]

thansk guys.....
but what constitues a legit reason?

truth is i bought the site cause i knew sooner or later they would want the name.....

and i have raskass redirected to my rapbattle.com site......is this ok?

[Jason]

Well, I wouldn't go telling them that. last time I checked though, you could buy any domain so long as your intent isn't to squat on it to force a sale by a company who uses that name. Also be careful if you start up a fan site with it, you don't want to give them a legal foothold by using their copyrignted images. lyrics, songs, etc.

[Dr. Web]

truth is i bought the site cause i knew sooner or later they would want the name.....


Look, they offered you $500 for something you paid $35 bucks for. Whats the problem here?

You do realize that since your only intent was to sell the name for profit....you ARE in fact squatting. Your not going to become a millionaire just because you hold onto this Domain Name. Once they decide that a lawyer can easily (1 hour court case) take it from you...BY: looking how long you have had it, and the fact that you have done nothing with it....they are going to take it from you by providing a court with the truth of the matter.

They may have been rude to you, but you are trying to make $$$ off of their clients name. The only reason they haven't done eanything yet, is that you just bought the name on April 12th. You usually have 90 days to get something up there.... before they can go to court and plead their case.

C'mon! If you want to keep the name....do something with it! Seriously....I don't feel bad for you at all....not one bit. Your complaining that the 1400% markup on your domain name wasn't enough ($500 dollars for a $35 dollar investment??!), which incidentially you bought for the sole purpose of selling for profit.

rrrrrrrrrright.

[kevin]

Got to agree with the Doc on this one.

If the name rasskass is a registered trademark you will most likely lose any court case if it comes to that. Even if you are just subpoenaed to appear in court it will cost you (or your parents)more than $500 if you have to travel out of state, get a lawyer, etc etc.....

If you live in the USA I'm not sure but at sixteen you may not have the legal right to own a domain name anyway, so unless you have a legal aged adult listed as owner that might also be a problem. Ask your parents for guidance.

Regards,
Kevin

[shadowz]

such a hateful person mr webb.....
****.....

and kevin i wont go to court if im supena'd....im not obligated so xxxx that......its the i net theres sorta of a leanecy on i net ****, theres no real bounderies, except dont do credit card fraud....everything else is really vague....so thejudge or state or whoever will prob jus let me go......

but ummmm.....

i think i found my solution....ima make a site on rasafarians and the meaning behind ras kas name/meaing/and the religeon behind it....and not mention one thing bout the rapper.....

[Dr. Web]

You asked for enlightenment.....here it is.
This is some of the policy you agreed to when you purchased the domain name. It is directly from interNIC:

Uniform Domain Name
Dispute Resolution Policy

Policy Adopted: August 26, 1999
Implementation Documents Approved: October 24, 1999

a. Applicable Disputes. You are required to submit to a mandatory administrative proceeding in the event that a third party (a "complainant") asserts to the applicable Provider, in compliance with the Rules of Procedure, that

(i) your domain name is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in which the complainant has rights; and

(ii) you have no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the domain name; and

(iii) your domain name has been registered and is being used in bad faith.



b. Evidence of Registration and Use in Bad Faith. For the purposes of Paragraph 4(a)(iii), the following circumstances, in particular but without limitation, if found by the Panel to be present, shall be evidence of the registration and use of a domain name in bad faith:

(i) circumstances indicating that you have registered or you have acquired the domain name primarily for the purpose of selling, renting, or otherwise transferring the domain name registration to the complainant who is the owner of the trademark or service mark or to a competitor of that complainant, for valuable consideration in excess of your documented out-of-pocket costs directly related to the domain name; or

(ii) you have registered the domain name in order to prevent the owner of the trademark or service mark from reflecting the mark in a corresponding domain name, provided that you have engaged in a pattern of such conduct; or

(iii) you have registered the domain name primarily for the purpose of disrupting the business of a competitor; or

(iv) by using the domain name, you have intentionally attempted to attract, for commercial gain, Internet users to your web site or other on-line location, by creating a likelihood of confusion with the complainant's mark as to the source, sponsorship, affiliation, or endorsement of your web site or location or of a product or service on your web site or location.


If an Administrative Panel decides that your domain name registration should be canceled or transferred, we will wait ten (10) business days (as observed in the location of our principal office) after we are informed by the applicable Provider of the Administrative Panel's decision before implementing that decision. We will then implement the decision unless we have received from you during that ten (10) business day period official documentation (such as a copy of a complaint, file-stamped by the clerk of the court) that you have commenced a lawsuit against the complainant

[Dr. Web]

heres the link to the source:
http://www.networksolutions.com/en_US/legal/dispute-policy.html

. Furthermore, you agree that if you are subject to litigation regarding your registration and use of our domain name registration services, we may deposit control of your domain name record into the registry of the judicial body by supplying a party with a registrar certificate from us.

So you see, you can avoid going to court....but the record company has a pretty good case against you right now. They don't need you to show up before they take it from you. And they even have someone who can testify in court that you wanted 'compensation' of more than $500 for the $35 domain name.

I am not hateful, but your breaking the law quite obviously here. There ARE better ways to make money.

[Ian]

My suggestion is you should take the $500 and run if possible. You are clearly breaking the law by trying to make money out of selling domain names. If they commence court procedings it's going to cost you a lot more than what you paid for the domain. And even if you build a site on it, you may still loose it.

If you give up the domain name now, $35 is a cheap loss for thinking you could do this and you will have learned from your experience(possibly).

Also please refrain from using bad language on this board or you will find your posts deleted.
Thank you.

[kevin]

hey shadowz,

keep us posted and let us know what happens if anything. Anyways, see ya in 5 to 10...hehehe


Kevin

[Unregistered]

lil update, im sure noone cares....
but anyway they sent me a cease and desist email letter or some ish...an as soon as i seen that, i wuz like whut?????

at first i emailed them cursing them off saying i aint afraid, rah rah rah, i'll go all the way...

then i told big momma i might have to go to court...she started screaming bout takin i net away till im responsible and started getting the belt....

once i seen the belt,
i aim'd one of the record label marketing people and agreed to $500....

it will be good start up for my new network
www.rhymeboard.f2s.com
^^temparary address

:) :) :) :)


by the way this is a all true story i get the belt almost everyday for stupid ****, i have devoloped sort a tolerance for it

:(

[Dr. Web]

ha! your saying that while there were plenty of people giving you the straight facts here....all it would have took was 'the belt??!'
Thats funny, but its too bad that's what it took to make you realize that what you were doing was wrong.

[kevin]

Sorry to hear that corporal punishment is practiced in your home. Hopefully when you are a parent you will remember how it made you feel and not use it on your children.

Anyways.... thanks for the update. I think taking the $500 was a good decision.

Regards,
Kevin

[JohnM]

lol

[whkoh]

Yes. If you want, take the 500 bucks. If not, simply build a site and they can do nothing.

[HighSpec-HTML]

Once again the Little Fishie gets gobbled up by a Very Big Fishie with a Suit on lol!

ANd if you only bought it to make money, You Succeeded but you got what you desearve lol!

Sorry

just MHO

And it dont matter if you build a site, if you are Infringing a copyright, you cant do chit!

It will be taken away from you!

[Dave Swift]

Wow, this in an old post!

[Paul]

Very old. Isn't shadowz the same as shadowz ill.
Paul

[Dave Swift]

Yeah but he forgot the password for shadowz so had to register again.

[Paul]

Just stubmled on this post and I see they allready took over the domain. I think giving it up was a bad idea, I would have built a site around it. There was propably 10s of thousands of dollars to make of the site.
Thanks,
Paul

[Option1]

Originally posted by shadowz
....... i wont go to court if im supena'd....im not obligated so xxxx that......its the i net theres sorta of a leanecy on i net ****, theres no real bounderies, except dont do credit card fraud....everything else is really vague....so thejudge or state or whoever will prob jus let me go......

I sort of have an understanding of where this line of thinking came from, but how the hell does it still persist? Why is it so many people seem to think that normal law doesn't apply to the internet? Sorry, but I just don't get that.

Neil

[Shad0wziLL PT 2]

Hello all,


:eek: :eek:

It's more than two years later. The proverbial "I'm speechless" comes to mind. The immaturity expressed throughout my post, as well as intentional misspellings/grammical errors are absolutely horrendous. Although none of you know me on a personal level, I am still struck with great embarrassment. Thus will not post under my usual user handle on webmaster/hosting centric forums. However I will apologize on my own behalf.

Nonetheless, you may ask why I am revisiting this old thread? Well, for the irony of it all. You wouldn't believe what I do for a living nowadays. I'll live you in suspense a bit long. At the moment, I am still a foul-mouthed (offline) kid, as well as an 18 year old dropout, living on my own. Expected this much, right? Well, on the contrary my pessimistic friends. I work full-time online. Making a successful living owning and maintaining a network of hosting directories and webmaster oriented web properties. Hey, what can I say. They command some of the highest CPM's in the industry. With Google AdSense, my income (via CPC banners/skyscrapers) has tripled my monthly income. However that's another story. Guess where I make the bulk of my income (high four figures, and low five figures monthly) from? Domain speculation! That is right. I buy and sell high-end domains on a full-time basis. Don't worry though, all generic/dictionary dot com's. I am not Infringing, nor capitalizing on any trademarks. I wouldn't say I learned my lesson from this exact thread, as their was no real lesson to be learned. However, without knowing my exact mind-frame back then. I would go as far to say that this incident structured my entire business mentality. Motivating me further to pursue such a market. Go figure, one e-mail changed my life...To be honest, I had nothing going for me back then. Horrible grades, bad attitude, and absolutely no chance at all. Now however, between my sites & domain business I make an easy $10k+ monthly. Sure I drive a crap car, & live in a small apartment. But each day, I am reinvesting that money in progressing my small empire further and further. Be it securing the snap on an on-hold/expired domain months in advance. To getting the top bids on all the major drop proxy-bidding clubs (Namewinner,Pool,TFN,DropWizard, etc., etc.). Spending thousands of dollars on a single (pending delete/dropping) domain! So as you see, all was not lost for this young naive boy. Flourishing into a somewhat respectable young man. Go figure.

I'm overwhelmed to say the least. I've pretty much seen an 'archive' of my previous self. Although a bit disappointed at how juvenile I presented myself. The satisfaction, as well as a reality check at just how far I have come has succumbed me with gratification. Years from now, who knows. I may even have my secretary, from my 20-floor office building type up my reply. lol

Anyway peace and progression my fellow webmasters. I wish you all much success.

[Persay]

Originally posted by Shad0wziLL PT 2
Guess where I make the bulk of my income (high four figures, and low five figures monthly) from? Domain speculation! That is right. I buy and sell high-end domains on a full-time basis.Haha, that actually made me 'lol.' This thread as a whole is pretty funny indeed, made even more humourous by the fact that I'm 18 and have no idea who this artist is of whom you speak :)

Your old posts were so funny especially the 'they'll probably let me off' post. Hahaha, I don't think I'll be able to sleep tonight.

[ricesteam]

Good post. Funny Read

I like the psuedo before and after theme.

[Modulus]

Hi,

Weird - that's a dramatic change in two years.. 10k a month is INSANE.. you must be living it up.. I don't think you should of dropped out of school (finish HS at least) though.

Intead of reinvesting the money back into your business, maybe you should lock most up in the bank or in bonds and not touch it.. maybe put like half of your earnings in the bank, put about 2k back into your business, and keep the 3k for living costs (very comfortable living costs!).. just a suggestion, what do I know, I'm poor :)

Anyhow, congrats with your new life.

P.S. I think that people who buy domains in the SOLE purpose of trying to sell it back to other people (trade marks, company names, etc) is just WRONG...