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Who had the cleverest ads? Who was the funniest?  Facebook, Youtube and Twitter (and maybe even a few old-school water coolers) will be buzzing the rest of today with chatter about both an amazing game and some good and some not so good ads.  Youtube’s voting is still going on and you can catch all the ads that you missed. There were some good ones that got a little chuckle from me, but generally speaking the creative wasn’t outstanding. The companies that advertised on the game and matter most in this little “domain world” were Google and Godaddy. . .

On Twitter a lot of people seemed to like the Google ad but like Jeff Jarvis in this article, I wasn’t really super impressed. It was a clever use of story to demonstrate the product and was classically simple, but really does something so simple as using Google need to be demonstrated?  Jarvis makes a point about France and Football not being a great matchup. It could have been more audience targeted, but CEO Eric Schmidt admitted that the ad wasn’t created for specifically for the Big Game.  Also, doesn’t Google already TOTALLY dominate search ?  I get that it’s a great branding opportunity and the ad endeared many to the brand, but Google has a lot of other offerings to showoff to that the average guy on the couch may not have a clue about.  Did they just release a phone or something ?

Overall, Google winning the love of most viewers is okay by me and it’s surreal to think that what some are calling the #1 advertisement is for a “new media” brand that has chipped away the base of “traditional media” revenues and completely changed the advertising landscape.  To me, Google’s ad running on the Super Bowl gives the idea of Super Bowl advertising more legitimacy.

Most disappointing to me (and to several others) was the Godaddy commercials.  Ok, we get it Godaddy. You like to have controversy and you like to have your ads pulled so you can get more PR before the game, but really come on. It’s done.   It used to be impressive to me that a domain company had the money and guts to invest in expensive Super Bowl ads, but I’m over it.  Godaddy released several ads this year. One ad got cut and two that didn’t get cut made it on air during the game (one posted below).  Personally, I would have preferred the cut ad. It does a better job explaining the product and isn’t all about popping open shirts.

While I sat in my comfy chair watching the game and surfing on my phone, my twitter stream filled with negative reactions to Godaddy ads, but suddenly Bob Parson’s chimes in with a “72% surveyed say GoDaddy.com #sb44 ads were hilarious.” tweet. What !?  Who are these people taking this survey? Even the 4 person team on twitter @godaddyguy even chimed in saying they were having a hard time keeping up. This is where you earn your keep I guess guys.

Back to the ads.  The premise for these ads is basically pretend to show some boobies at the end and leave them hanging with ” See More at GoDaddy.com” . . .and I’m sure MANY went hoping to see more.  Like one blogger points out “Not only do these cliffhanger endings generate buzz and capture the audience’s attention, it also gets people to actually visit GoDaddy.com to see what its all about.”  Only problem is, like crying wolf, you can only pull this “trick” once.  The viewer doesn’t get anything special when they go to the site.

You got the viewer to your site with the same “1 horse trick”.  Now what?  The viewer thinks “I went to the site and I didn’t get what I wanted”.  They now remember you and your brand as being a company that teases them into thinking they were getting a “free porn show” . . . oh and maybe remembers you sell domain names.  As Brian Clark from Copyblogger.com said, “Thanks GoDaddy, but your target audience already knows where the best porn on the web is“.

Fear not though, Godaddy is ready to give you the chance to show them how to do it better.  In a similar fashion to other brands before them, Godaddy is holding a contest and awarding prizes for the best ads.  Hopefully they have judges that aren’t  the same 72% that voted in the previously mentioned poll.

If anyone has a camera, a ski boat and a pet shark, I’ve got a good idea for a commercial :)

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.COM Domains

Other TLDs

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Even though the interest in the Silent Domain Auction after the Targeted TRAFFIC conference by Rick Latona could not generate much interest, it appears it produced at least one noteworthy sale, with LongIsland.com selling for $370,000 USD. However only 9 out of the 600 listed domains sold according to the results currently posted on Proxibid.

The sales were:

LongIsland.com $370,000
Imply.com $4,000
JusticeDepartment.com $1,800
CuteTops.com $1,100
OCNN.com $1,000
DefensiveBack.com $400
php.mx $300
eTaxReturn.com $300
CoverBet.com $300

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Famous SEO expert Aaron Wall had commented on the IPO with the following words:

click arbitrage meets spouse arbitrage…literally! :D

[via @AnnB03]

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In order to celebrate the anniversary the main sponsor and registry operator Verisign, will be hosting  a Policy Forum in Washington DC on March 16th and will end with gala in San Francisco on May 26th. The company will also announce the creation of four $75,000 research grants that will be awarded to those who show the most promise to shape the next 25 years of .com.

“In the past 25 years, the Internet has altered history and transformed lives around the globe. It has forever changed our relationships with the world around us by providing unprecedented access to people, places and information. The .com celebration is about honoring the innovators who have gotten us to where we are today and recognizing those who will help shape the next 25 years,” said Mark McLaughlin, CEO, VeriSign. “Billions of times each day, VeriSign connects web sites and users, while helping to ensure the Internet revolution continues to unfold at its characteristically fast pace. We’re proud of the role that VeriSign plays in enabling the .com infrastructure and in the role that our registrars play in providing the crucial platform and access to .com every day.”

Read the full press release after the jump.

.com Approaches 25th Anniversary

VeriSign to Lead Year-Long Initiative to Recognize Innovators and Leaders That Have Shaped First 25 Years of .com

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA — (Marketwire) — February 3, 2010 — In March 1985, the first .com domain was registered, igniting the birth of the consumer Internet that, 25 years later, continues to transform communications, commerce and our society as a whole.

Beginning in March 2010, VeriSign, the long-time operator of the .com domain, will lead an industry-wide initiative to recognize the innovators and leaders that have shaped the first 25 years of .com and in doing so transformed our economy and society. The celebration of “25 Years of .com” will kick off with a policy-focused event in Washington, DC on March 16.

In conjunction with that event, VeriSign will also announce the creation of four $75,000 research grants that will be awarded to those who show the most promise to shape the next 25 years of .com.

“In the past 25 years, the Internet has altered history and transformed lives around the globe. It has forever changed our relationships with the world around us by providing unprecedented access to people, places and information. The .com celebration is about honoring the innovators who have gotten us to where we are today and recognizing those who will help shape the next 25 years,” said Mark McLaughlin, CEO, VeriSign. “Billions of times each day, VeriSign connects web sites and users, while helping to ensure the Internet revolution continues to unfold at its characteristically fast pace. We’re proud of the role that VeriSign plays in enabling the .com infrastructure and in the role that our registrars play in providing the crucial platform and access to .com every day.”

Details on major events and initiatives:

March 16: Policy Impact Forum, Washington, DC

The Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center Amphitheater

The Internet has been the source of — and increasingly, the forum for — some of the most interesting and controversial policy debates in recent times. Public policy has been challenged to keep up with the ever-evolving, fast-paced advances of the Internet and the often-perplexing economic and social questions that it raises.

This day-long event will feature thought-provoking keynote speakers and two engaging panel discussions that will bring together innovators, entrepreneurs, visionaries and Internet users to reflect on how we got here; to discuss the significant impact of the Internet on our economy, society and environment; and to focus on what the future of .com will hold.

.com 25 Awards

.com would not be what it is today without the early innovators who paved the way. As part of this celebration, VeriSign will soon announce the top 75 people and companies who have made the most notable impact in shaping the Internet and ultimately, our world. From this list, a distinguished panel comprised of some of the Internet’s most important influencers, will select the “.com 25.” Winners of the .com 25 will be announced at a gala event later this spring in San Francisco.

A web site — www.25yearsof.com — will host a variety of multimedia content throughout the coming months, showcasing the innovators and entrepreneurs who have shaped the Internet. 25yearsof.com is a year-long celebration of Internet innovation, all of which can be followed at:

Twitter: Keep up with our latest news at @25yearsofdotcom

Facebook: Friend us at facebook.com/25yearsofdotcom

Video: Watch people from leading Internet companies answer the question “How Do You .com?” at 25yearsof.com

About VeriSign

VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ: VRSN) is the trusted provider of Internet infrastructure services for the networked world. Billions of times each day, VeriSign helps companies and consumers all over the world engage in communications and commerce with confidence. Additional news and information about the company is available at www.verisign.com

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Is Chris Bosh a “Cyber-hero” or “Cybersquatter”?

Many domainers are now familiar with the remarkable news item reporting that Toronto Raptors NBA star Chris Bosh won a judgment for $120,000 against a domainer, Luis Zavala (Hoopology.com), for registering ChrisBosh.com. The judgment apparently came down in April, but then Bosh’s lawyers reportedly convinced the judge to order that the domainer’s 800 other mainly sports and celebrity domain names domains be handed over to Chris Bosh as well, since the defendant wasn’t likely to pay the $120,000 judgement that Chris Bosh had obtained in an action under the Anti-Cybersquatting Consumer Protection Act, for cybersquatting.

Bosh’s lawyer reportedly stated, that “the Raptors’ star has no intention of holding onto any of them except his own. He’s not trying to make any money here. He just wants to give these players their names back“.

Accordingly, Chris Bosh sues a guy for cybersquatting and then takes 800 cybersquatted domain names as ‘damages’. Bosh’s lawyers are apparently going to decide for themselves, who deserves the domain names: “We are notifying the world that anyone whose name is on this list that has a legitimate right to the domain name, Chris will transfer it to them for free,” said Brian Heidelberger, one of three lawyers who represented Bosh.” Accordingly, it appears that the Judge may have enabled a sports star and his lawyers to determine ‘who has the rights to particular domain names’. Here is the actual text of the lawyers’ terms for handing over the domain names – a kind of topsy-turvy “para-UDRP” process which is apparently entirely within the discretion of a basketball star and his lawyers:

Chris Bosh and Max Deal offer the return of the domain name free of charge as a courtesy to the celebrity named herein, provided that such person promptly requests the return of such domain name in writing from Max Deal. Domain names will not be returned without a direct written request from an authorized person to Hadi@MaxDealTechnologies.com. Prior to transferring any domain name on this list, Chris Bosh and Max Deal reserve the right to require documentation in their reasonable discretion to support the requester’s rights in the domain name. Domain names on this list may or may not be renewed at Chris Bosh and Max Deal’s sole discretion. Chris Bosh and Max Deal reserve the right to at any time in their sole discretion to delete or cancel domain names on this list. Chris Bosh and Max Deal will not charge any fees for the transfer of domain names on this list. All third party costs relating to transfer of any domain name on this list to an authorized rights holder, including but not limited to transfer fees charged by the requester’s registrar, are the sole responsibility of the party requesting transfer. Chris Bosh and Max Deal make no representations express or implied regarding any domain name on this list. By requesting or accepting the transfer of a domain name, you hereby release Chris Bosh and Max Deal from any and all liabilities in connection therewith.

But who is Max Deal? Max Deal is short for “Max Deal Technologies”, a company reportedly founded by Chris Bosh and partner, Hadi Teheran. According to Bosh’s lawyers’ press release, “Max Deal is a social media company that allows brands to increase their reach“. Certainly using the ‘recovered’ domain names as aforesaid demonstrates an impressive reach, even for an NBA star. This is what Chris Bosh has to say according to the press release:

“I will offer the return of the domain names free of charge, but I’d also love the opportunity to show their owners how Max Deal can help.”

Accordingly, it appears that when someone calls up to ‘get their domain name back’ from Chris Bosh, who is the new owner of the formerly cybersquatted domain names, Bosh will take the opportunity to try to sell them on ‘how they can use the domain names in connection with his social media business’. Furthermore, according to the terms referred to above, Chris Bosh can delete or cancel any domain name in his sole discretion. Accordingly, one had better be careful or the domain name could get dropped and picked up by another cybersquatter.

The question then arises, ‘what happens if Chris Bosh decides to not give back a name because the claimant doesn’t meet his criteria?’ Maybe Bosh takes the position that one of the highschool basketball players or Venezuelan racecar drivers on his list doesn’t have common law trademark rights? Could Bosh be the Respondent in an ICANN UDRP proceeding or ACPA action? The Complainant could argue that Bosh registered the domain names in bad faith and is using them in bad faith because he won’t give them back and registered them with the intention of using them in bad faith as part of his monetization scheme in Max Deal…

Can you imagine if a domainer registered 800 celebrity domain names and his defence was that he would give them back to anyone who convinced him that they were the rightful owner and listened to his pitch that they could do great business together by letting the domainer monetize their name? What would happen to the domainer in a case like that?….

Apparently, this situation has raised the ire of at least one domain name owner. If you visit MaxDeal.com (registered to “Donain [sic] Name for Sale of Staten Island, NY”, and apparently not associated with the MaxDealTechnologies.com web site registered to Bosh’s partner, Hadi Teheran, which is currently down) the site states that it’s slogan is, “MaxDeal.com, Creating an Unfair Advantage for Sports Agents”. Will this be the next target on Bosh’s domain name acquisition spree? Or will it be MaxDeals.com (the plural) currently operated as a jewellery store founded by a Max Beloff in 1933?

According to Bosh’s lawyer, Chris Bosh is a “cyber-hero”. Nevertheless, having become the owner of some 800 domain names ‘belonging’ to someone else, one must wonder whether he has been made into an unwitting cybersquatter.

For more information on domain name law please contact Zak Muscovitch at zak@muscovitch.com and visit http://www.dnattorney.com/

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