Month: May 2011

Categories
Disputes News Trademarks WIPO

UberMedia has change of heart on twitteripad.com

Twitter for iPad

Last week I wrote about how UberMedia registered the domain name twitteripad.com, despite the company’s sometimes rocky relationship with Twitter.

In February, UberTwitter, Twidroyd, and UberCurrent were temporarily suspended by Twitter.  The UberMedia apps were shut off for terms of service violations, one of which included trademark infringement over the name UberTwitter.  UberMedia quickly changed the name of UberTwitter to UberSocial in response to Twitter’s requests.

This week, it’s a different story.  To avoid possible Twitter troubles, it appears UberMedia has had a change of heart on the domain twitteripad.com.  The same day the story ran on May 21, the domain name was deleted at GoDaddy and became available again.  GoDaddy didn’t hold the name or send it to auction, instead it released it.

Chances are, it won’t be long before it gets registered again.  But maybe not.  Twitteripad.com has trouble written all over it since it could be considered a trademark infringing domain name on not one but two widely used products, Twitter and Apple’s iPad.

In mid February Twitter got the domain twittersearch.com after filing a dispute at WIPO in December 2010.  The dispute wasn’t decided by WIPO, instead the name was apparently turned over to Twitter without having to wait for a panel decision.

Categories
News

New date for “The Rapture” on October 21, brings new domain registrations

The Rapture

Harold Camping, has apparently miscalculated “The Rapture” date and says it will occur five months from now on October 21, 2011, along with end of the world. 

Since announcing the new date, several domain names related to the new doomsday date have been registered by individuals.  Many of the domain names registered earlier today include: 10212011.com, October21rapture.com, RaptureOctober21.com, Rapture10212011.com, to name a few.

October21.com, registered way back in 2001, is currently parked at Sedo.  The seller’s minimum bid threshold is currently set at 500 EUR.

Not all of the new domain registrations are parked though, some already have sites online.

Peter Sachs, the owner of 10212011.com, has a one-page website with a funny message that reads: Judgement Day May 21, 2011 (Rain Date: October 21, 2011).

[Photo of The Rapture via Wikimedia Commons]

Categories
News

Founded by former TechCrunch writer, The Inquisitr sells for $330,000 on Flippa

The Inquisitr

The Inquisitr (inquisitr.com) founded by former TechCrunch writer and b5media co-founder Duncan Riley in May 2008, sold for $330,000 USD on Friday.

The site went up for sale on Flippa a week ago. 

In the last 6 months, it has run in the 7-8 million page view range based on statistics provided in the auction listing.  In terms of revenue, the site generated $15,449 per month in income based on an average over the last 12 months.

According to a post on The Inquisitr’s website, it sounds like Duncan is close to a near internet meltdown and just needs to disconnect for awhile. 

“Due to personal issues I need a break, and when I say break, I mean a full blown not be on the internet break. The site stats (traffic and revenue) continue to pay my bills, but you get to a point in your life that you know you need proper time off before you ended up committed with head problems, and I’m at that stage now,” wrote Duncan.

According to Wikipedia, in 2002 he launched The Blog Herald.  Then in 2005, he launched Weblog Empire which became part of b5media (another company he co-founded).  He joined TechCrunch in 2007, then resigned a year later in order to launch The Inquisitr.

Categories
News Trademarks

Despite shaky relationship with Twitter, UberMedia buys the domain name Twitteripad.com

ubermedia

Despite having its apps suspended earlier this year by Twitter for violating the company’s policies, one of which included trademark infringement, that hasn’t stopped UberMedia from purchasing the domain name Twitteripad.com. 

The company which is owned by IdeaLab and was previously called UberTwitter, registered the domain name earlier this week on May 18 according to registrant records.

Registrant:
   UberMedia
   130 W. Union Street
   Pasadena, California 91103
   United States

   Domain Name: TWITTERIPAD.COM
      Created on: 18-May-11
      Expires on: 18-May-12
      Last Updated on: 18-May-11

Twitteripad.com could be considered a trademark infringing domain name on not one but two widely used products, Twitter and Apple’s iPad. 

Given IdeaLab’s affinity for domain names and its shaky trackrecord with Twitter, the registration is surprising, but then UberMedia has had its share of scandal and news in 2011.

After the shutdown of its popular apps in February, the company recently lost to Twitter in its bid for TweetDeck. 

Rumors have surfaced that UberMedia may have plans to launch a competitor site to Twitter that addresses many of the problems users complain about.

As of right now, the domain name twitteripad.com doesn’t resolve.

Categories
News Video Games

ModernWarfare3.com gets thousands of Facebook fans, growth continues. Site not affiliated with Call of Duty

Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 Attack on New York City

The owner of ModernWarfare3.com has gained thousands of fans on Facebook and is adding hundreds per day following the news that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 will be released this November. 

The domain name and website, which I have written about previously here and here, has been adding new features in the past few days including a newsletter for announcements, videos, pre-order links, and a forum that is under construction.

The website has the feel of an official Call of Duty site, that is, until you scroll the bottom and see the hard-to-read text that says: “The website ModernWarfare3.com is not associated, affiliated, endorsed or sponsored by the  creators or publishers of the game (we like them a lot though.)”.

With MW3 buzz all over the web, expect this site to get a lot of direct navigation (type-in) traffic.

If you haven’t see what all the buzz is about, here’s a look at the world premiere trailer.