Cybersquatters pounce on Pasta Hut brand
- Added:
- Oct 09, 2008
This week’s much publicised rebrand of Pizza Hut to Pasta Hut has already fallen victim to opportunistic cybersquatters, who have been quick to cash in on key domain names relating to the fast-food chain.
Major web addresses including www.pastahut.net, www.pastahut.info and www.pastahut.org, have been registered, and the sites filled with profitable Google-style pay-per-click links. Even the flagship domain www.pastahut.com has been registered by someone who has listed contact details on the site, likely with a view to selling the domain to the highest bidder.
The UK arm of the pizza group is expected to spend a further £100m over the next six years to revamp its 700 outlets, increase the number of restaurants and introduce an improved menu.
However, it seems the organisation has overlooked implementing a solid online brand protection strategy by not registering some of its most valuable domains.
Jonathan Robinson, Chief Operating Officer of domain names company NetNames, said: “It never fails to surprise us how quick off the mark cybersquatters are to register the domains of major brands where given the opportunity. The UK subsidiary of Pizza Hut will have spent much time and money planning for this rebrand, however they have failed to register some of the key domain names relating to their online brand.”
Robinson adds, "This once again underlines the need for organisations to manage their online brand effectively and proactively register relevant domains well ahead of a major launch or rebrand.”