Categories
News Technology

Motorola gets MotorolaRAZR.com 7 years after launch, in time for Droid RAZR

Motorola RAZR V3i

Seven years after Motorola launched the Motorola RAZR, called by some the “iPod of Mobile Phones”, it has secured the rights to the domain name MotorolaRAZR.com, through Corporation Service Company (CSC), a company that specializes in corporate identity protection.

While the RAZR is one of Motorola’s brands, the timing of the acquisition could continue to strengthen rumors that Motorola is planning to combine two of its most recognizable brands into a new device called the “Droid RAZR“.

It doesn’t appear Motorola used legal means to acquire the domain, as no cases are found in the online databases of the National Arbitration Forum or WIPO.  However, it’s possible lawyers for Motorola sent the owner a cease-and-desist letter.

It’s also very possible that Motorola opened up its wallet and paid the previous owner a large sum of money to get the name quickly.  I’ve reached out to the previous owner of MotorolaRAZR.com for more details, and will update this post if I hear back.

DroidRAZR.com was only recently registered in mid September, the same day rumors began to surface of a “Droid RAZR” smartphone.  However, Motorola doesn’t appear to be the owner.

Here’s a look at the updated Whois record for MotorolaRAZR.com.

Registrant:
Corporation Service Company
Domain Registrar
2711 Centerville Road Suite 400
Wilmington, DE 19808
US

Registrar Name….: CORPORATE DOMAINS, INC.
Registrar Whois…: whois.corporatedomains.com

Domain Name: motorolarazr.com

Created on…………..: Sun, Oct 31, 2004
Expires on…………..: Wed, Oct 31, 2012
Record last updated on..: Sat, Oct 01, 2011

Administrative,Technical Contact:
Corporation Service Company
Domain Registrar
2711 Centerville Road Suite 400
Wilmington, DE 19808
US

Although the registrant is CSC, Motorola uses the brand protection service to purchase domain names for its released and yet-to-be released devices like the Accusense, the Energia, and the Kore.

Discussion: Electronista

Categories
News Technology

Amazon goes on a massive buying spree, buys over 500 Kindle Fire & Silk domains

Kindle Fire

The announcement of the all-new Kindle Fire and Silk browser set to be released on November 15, 2011, has ignited a massive domain name buying spree by Amazon. 

On the very same day Amazon unveiled the Kindle Fire, the company registered well over 500 domain names related to the Kindle Fire and Silk browser products, through the brand protection company MarkMonitor.

The names range from 3gKindleFire.com to KindleFireClouddrive.com, and SilkSmartphones.com to SilkHTML5.com

While many of the registrations are certainly defensive in nature, some of the registrations may hint at future plans for Amazon’s newest products.

Because the list of registrations is so long, you can view the registrations here.

Discussion: The Next Web, @RobinWauters, Business Insider, Geeky Gadgets, TechFlash, Media Bistro, CNET News, CNET AustraliaSlashGear, TechRadar and Digital Trends

Categories
News Technology Trademarks

Samsung files new trademarks for Lens, Shortcut, Centura, Montage and Array

Windows 8 Samsung Tablet

Samsung has filed several new trademark applications that cover mobile phones, smartphones, and tablet computers.

The filings suggest Samsung is preparing to launch several new devices called the Samsung Lens, Samsung Shortcut, Samsung Centura, Samsung Montage, and the Samsung Array.

The trademark applications were all filed on September 9, 2011 by Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. 

Of the five trademark filings, the ‘Samsung Array’ was the only one that had been filed in the past.  However, the trademark application was abandoned in March 2011, then re-filed (Serial Number: 85419340) to not only include smartphones, but tablets as well.

The trademark applications for Samsung Lens, Samsung Shortcut, Samsung Centura, and the Samsung Montage are all new.

Discussion: Geeky Gadgets

(Photo of Samsung Windows 8 Tablet via Weibo – MichelleHu)

Categories
News Technology

Optus planning launch of the iPhone 5

iPhone 5 concept

Australian mobile service provider Optus is taking its first step in launching the iPhone 5 by having marketing automation company Eloqua register the domain name OptusiPhone5.com on its behalf.

Eloqua was the same company that registered OptusiPhone4.com (Whois) for its client in early July 2010, less than 3 weeks before the official launch of the iPhone 4 in Australia.  Optus used the web address to set up a launch page which provided details on its Apple iPhone 4 launch parties.

While rumors of the iPhone 5 release date swirl around the internet, it may be more difficult to pinpoint an exact release date for the device in Australia, since Apple usually launches in the United States first.

At the time of this story going online, the OptusiPhone5.com website has a short message that reads, “We are sorry but this is temporarily unavailable. “ 

Here’s a look at the Whois record for OptusiPhone5.com.

 Registrant:
Eloqua Corporation
   553 Richmond Street West
   Toronto, ON m5v1y6
   CA

   Domain Name: OPTUSIPHONE5.COM

   Administrative Contact, Technical Contact:
      Eloqua Corporation               
      553 Richmond Street West
      Toronto, ON m5v1y6
      CA

   Record expires on 01-Sep-2012.
   Record created on 01-Sep-2011.

Image credit: Michal Bonikowski

Categories
News Technology

RIM continues domain name buying spree, this time focused on BBM Music

BBM Music service

Research In Motion has officially announced its BBM Music Service and according to This is my next, “users can grow their libraries of available music by connecting with other BBM Music users”.

As with any new product launch at RIM, BBM Music isn’t any different. 

There were several new domain name registrations.  

Unlike before as we saw with the unveiling of new smartphones and batches of 200+ and 500+ new domains registered, this time the company went a bit lighter than usual, registering less than a dozen.

Here’s a look at the company’s latest registrations:

http://whois.domaintools.com/aboutbbm.com 
http://whois.domaintools.com/aboutbbm.net 
http://whois.domaintools.com/bbmconnected.net 
http://whois.domaintools.com/bbmconnectedapps.com 
http://whois.domaintools.com/bbmconnectedapps.net 
http://whois.domaintools.com/bbmfeatures.com 
http://whois.domaintools.com/bbmfeatures.net 

As of today, Research In Motion doesn’t appear to be the owner of BlackBerryMusic.com whose registrant is currently hidden behind Moniker’s Whois Privacy service. 

However, even though the company missed out on getting the name first, it may have no problem getting the name rather cheaply if it decides to file a domain dispute with the World Intellectual Property Organziation (WIPO). 

Going back to the mid-2000s, RIM has won dozens and dozens of cases over the blackberry domain including blackberrytunes.com and blackberrymovies.com.