RE: [registrars] RE: Domain Name Expiration Notices

["Donna Mcgehee" <dmcgehee@bulkregister.com>]

By coincidence, I received three of these notices in the mail today as well.
And yes, we have spent countless support hours dealing with many clients
complaining about this confusing and purely deceptive marketing practice.

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-registrars@dnso.org [mailto:owner-registrars@dnso.org]On
Behalf Of Jim Archer
Sent: Thursday, March 21, 2002 2:33 PM
To: Beckwith, Bruce; registrars@dnso.org; tim@godaddy.com
Subject: RE: [registrars] RE: Domain Name Expiration Notices


Hi Bruce...

I think I know what Tim might be referring to.  As you said, I think its a
different issue then the one I described.  BTW, thanks for clarifying that.
I appreciate it.

On Tim's issue, by complete coincidence, I received correspondance from
Verisign in the mail today.  In large letters on the top, it says "Domain
Name Expiration Notice."    The Verisign logo is present on the upper left,
but otherwise there is no easy way to know this came from Verisign.  The
return address on the envelope is Expiration Department, 200 Berwyn Park,
Berwyn, PA, 19312.

Additionally, there is a pre-paid envelope included pre-addressed to a
different address: Expiration Department, PO Box 785, Herndon, VA
20172-9930.

There is also a fax number and  the consumer can fax the form to
1-866-234-4134.

The form itself looks mostly like a renewal form, but the word transfer
does appear twice.  Once under the instructions and once where the consumer
is to sign.  There is very small print at the bottom of the form that says
"Review the terms and conditions on the back of this form."

On the back of the form, it explains that there is a transfer to Verisign
involved.  A casual look at this form even by an experienced domain name
owner does not clearly reveal whats going on and I would expect the average
domain name owner would be confused by this, so this is probably what Tim
is talking about.

Bruce and Tim, does this sound right?

Jim


--On Thursday, March 21, 2002 10:05 AM -0500 "Beckwith, Bruce"
<bbeckwith@verisign.com> wrote:

> Tim,
>
> I wasn't addressing the issue you raised, but rather was responding to
> Jim's statements.
>
> I'll look into the issue you describe.
>
> Regards,
>
> Bruce
>
>  -----Original Message-----
> From: 	tim@godaddy.com [mailto:tim@godaddy.com]
> Sent:	Thursday, March 21, 2002 9:03 AM
> To:	bbeckwith@verisign.com
> Cc:	registrars@dnso.org
> Subject:	RE: [registrars] RE: Domain Name Expiration Notices
>
> Bruce,
>
> I don't think that's what's happening with the mailing our customers are
> getting. It looks simply like a renewal notice but the box for their
> signature says "Renewal and Transfer Authorization."
>
> If this is what you explain below, why would they need to authorize a
> transfer?
>
> Tim
>
>  -------- Original Message --------
>    Subject: RE: [registrars] RE: Domain Name Expiration Notices
>    From: "Beckwith, Bruce" <bbeckwith@verisign.com>
>    Date: Thu, March 21, 2002 5:22 am
>    To: registrars@dnso.org
>
>    Jim,
>
>    I think that you are specifically referring to is the situation where
>    a domain is coming up for renewal, it has entered the renewal notice
>    cycle, and then is transferred to another registrar prior to
>    expiration.  Since we use an outside vendor to generate and mail the
>    renewal notices, it is possible that in the few days that it takes to
>    generate the renewal list for the vendor and for the vendor to send
>    out the renewal notices, that the domain has been transferred.  It is
>    not cost-effective to re-run the lists over-and-over - we rely on the
>    99.9% accuracy we have in the renewal notice process.
>
>    Since a transfer has occurred, one would assume that as in other
>    industries, the new registrar has explained to the customer that they
>    have changed providers, and they may get some remnant mail from the
>    former provider. Certainly this is what happens in the wireless and
>    long-distance
>    industries...
>
>    Regards,
>
>    Bruce
>
>    -----Original Message-----
>    From: Jim Archer [mailto:jarcher@registrationtek.com]
>    Sent: Wednesday, March 20, 2002 9:58 PM
>    To: tim@godaddy.com; registrars@dnso.org
>    Subject: Re: [registrars] RE: Domain Name Expiration Notices
>
>
>    Yes, thats what our customers receive. Postal mail expiration and
>    deactivation notices.  Prehaps Bruce can clarify what is happening?
>
>    --On Wednesday, March 20, 2002 7:31 PM -0700 tim@godaddy.com wrote:
>
>    > I need to correct this. It was not an email offer it was a postal
>    > mail offer.
>    >
>    > Tim Ruiz
>    > Go Daddy
>    >
>    > On Wed, 20 Mar 2002, Tim Ruiz wrote:
>    >
>    >> Our customers have been confused and complaining about an email
>    >> they received from VeriSign Registrar that looks like a simple
>    >> renewal notice.
>    > No
>    >> marketing copy, even the return address is Expiration Department...
>    >>
>    >> Have any of you been receiving similar complaints? What do you
>    >> think of
>    > this
>    >> practice in general?
>    >>
>    >> Another bit of a puzzle is how they know which of our customer's
>    >> domains
>    > are
>    >> expiring. According to our logs it doesn't appear that they've been
>    >> automating queries into our port 43.
>    >>
>    >> Tim Ruiz
>    >> Go Daddy
>    >>
>    >>
>    >



************************************
James W. Archer
Registration Technologies, Inc.
10 Crestview Drive
Greenville, RI 02828
401-949-4768 (voice)
401-949-5814 (fax)
jarcher@RegistrationTek.com