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The Globe and Mail

REPORT ON SMALL BUSINESS: YOUR WEBSITE

Your domain name: Once you've got it, don't lose it

By MICHAEL RYVAL

Thursday, March 17, 2005 Page C4

Special to The Globe and Mail

The ground rules in getting a domain name -- your company's on-line address, such as http://www.mybiz.ca or http://www.whatchamacallit.com -- are straightforward.

Go to any Internet registrar and type your preferred name in the "search" box to see what's available. It may be open with some extensions, such as .ca or .biz, but not others, such as .com or .org.

Remember to keep it short, catchy and relevant. If the name is available, bingo. Pay your $12.95 or $15 for a year and you're all set.

But keeping your domain name is different matter. Domain names are actually subscriptions that last from one to 10 years. Unless you renew them before they expire, they're gone.

"You only 'own' the subscription, which eventually expires," explains Norma Ritchie, Ottawa-based president of http://www.domainsatcost.ca, one of the largest registrars in Canada. Fortunately, he adds, registrars have safeguards in the form of e-mailed reminders to subscribers 30 to 45 days before the subscription runs out.

That's where the problems start. Some people ignore the reminder, usually out of carelessness, Mr. Ritchie says. If the domain name is not renewed within 60 days, it is released to the public.

But there are many instances where the person who registered the domain name has left the company and the reminder disappears into cyberspace.

"Rule No. 1 is: Make sure the e-mail address of the administrative contact is up-to-date," says Gabriel Ahad, director of communications at Canadian Internet Registration Authority, the Ottawa-based not-for-profit organization that oversees domain name registration in Canada. CIRA (http://www.cira.ca) also arbitrates any disputes over domain names.

As a corollary to that rule, Mr. Ahad recommends that small businesses become familiar with their domain registrar, to prevent any problems. Moreover, companies should make sure they hold the subscription. "In some cases," he says, "people have found out that the website designer applied for and held the domain name."

There's another potential problem surrounding domain names. "There are a lot of fraudulent renewals going on," cautions Matt Nakamura, head of MCN Consulting Inc., a Toronto web host and small business consulting firm.

By doing a so-called "whois" lookup at a domain registrar, anyone can find out who is the registrant, his or her address and e-mail. Some companies have "harvested" the information using sophisticated software, even though the practice is illegal. "This contradicts the use of 'whois' domain searches," Mr. Nakamura says.

These companies send a fake renewal notice and induce the recipient to hand over the fee. "But the small business owner is too busy to check the notice, and just pays the fee with a credit card." What's more, the domain name gets transferred from one registrar to another without the registrant being aware.

"Watch out," Mr. Nakamura warns. "Is the renewal notice coming from the company you originally dealt with? Know who your supplier is."

While CIRA admits the practice exists, it says it's much less common in Canada. "It's more common in the dot-com world, where there are 20 million websites," Mr. Ahad says, noting that there are fewer than 500,000 dot-ca sites.

To avoid these problems, he recommends business people safeguard their IDs and passwords or take advantage of multiple-year registrations. "Instead of spending $15 a year, spend $30 for two years. That way, you won't have to worry about it next year."

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