Cybersquatters pounce on iPhone domains
- Added:
- Sep 24, 2007
Domain name registry NetNames reports that a spate of cybersquatting has taken place over the past few months as speculation mounted on the launch of the iPhone and who the chosen UK operator would be.
It said that cybersquatters have been registering valuable domains relating to the iPhone and major UK mobile operators and linking them to lucrative Google-style pay-per-click advertising.
One cybersquatter has been working over the last few months looking to snap up as many operator related iPhone domains as possible including www.o2iphone.co.uk, www.o2iphone.net and www.orangeiphone.co.uk.
All of these domain names point to websites that feature pay-per-click advertising, some even offering international unlocked iPhones, making money on misdirected consumers.
Meanwhile numerous other domain names have been snapped up by cybersquatters in anticipation of the launch, including www.ukiphone.co.uk, www.tmobileiphone.com, www.02iphone.co.uk, and www.iphonevodafone.co.uk.
Jonathan Robinson, Chief Operating Officer of NetNames, which manages the domain name portfolios for a third of the FTSE 100 companies said: “The iPhone launch is one of the biggest product launches of 2007 and has been just as eagerly anticipated by cybersquatters as it has by consumers. Cybersquatters have spent a great deal of time over the past few months securing as many iPhone and operator domain name combinations as possible based on speculation about the launch.”
Robinson adds: “Online reputation is of the utmost importance to major international technology brands, yet many still overlook the threat from cybersquatters, leaving their online reputations open to an untold amount of damage."
This latest cybersquatting incident follows on the back of high profile celebrity brands like David Beckham, David Cameron, Prince William and Kate Middleton being targeted online in recent months.