nothanks.co.uk; iphalloffame.com

The IPkat was not hugely pleased to receive an email from an outfit calling itself HSBF Internet but which does not appear to have a website of its own. The text reads, in relevant part:

"We are selling the domain name CopyrightManagement.co.uk. This is the very first time since its initial registration in 1996 that this important domain has ever been available on the open market. The domain is currently on sale for just £795 + VAT.

Savvy players such as B&Q with their diy.com, British Gas with their gas.co.uk or Lloyds TSB with their insurance.co.uk domains have for many years reaped enormous rewards and marketing kudos from owning THE prime generic domains that define their respective industries. Nothing in the mindset of the public is more memorable than a domain that "does exactly what it says on the tin"!

Furthermore, most of our clients are now finding that prime domains such as this pay for themselves within weeks rather than months by virtue of the extra business that they drive to their websites by means of type in traffic and greatly enhanced search engine positions.

Would you like to go ahead with this?"

No, the IPKat would not like to go through with this. He thinks it's laughable to suggest that any kudos attaches to descriptive domain names - and consumers pay much less attention to them nowadays when everyone knows how to use search engines than they did ten years ago, when people used to key in 'intuitive' guesses and hope they'd come up with what they were looking for. Merpel is also curious to know about the "savvy players" stuff. What makes HSBF Internet think that Lloyds TSB or British Gas reaps "enormous rewards" from its possession of a descriptive domain name, rather than through old-fashioned saturation advertising through the conventional media?

Other people have been troubled by HSBF Internet too. See comments on identitytheft.co.uk here and on conservatoryfloors.co.uk here.


Jumping to false conclusions, the sure-eyed IPKat spotted the 'phallo-' bit and assumed that iphalloffame.com was going to be some sort of porno-site. The good news is that it's not a porno-site at all. The bad news is that it panders to an even baser instinct - man's need for lasting fame and the undying admiration of his colleagues. Yes, it's time for the 2007 nominations for the IP Hall of Fame.

Right: "The Cat's Meow" - Famous Cats by De La Nuez, on sale from www.animationartgallery.com

The prime mover is IP consultant, IAM editor, journalist and personality Joff Wild, who says:

"Too often, IP is seen as something that is of benefit only to large, faceless multinational business organisations. This makes it easy to attack and misrepresent - something that is happening more frequently every year. By injecting a human element, the IP Hall of Fame helps to show that far from being of benefit to a privileged few, the development of today's IP system has had a profound and overwhelmingly positive impact on billions of lives across the world".

Whether you agree with this sentiment, as the IPKat is happy to do so, or think like Merpel that it's really a load of sententious codswallop because it's those billions of lives across the world who enrich IP coffers by buying IP-products and services, do be sure to make your nominations. Anything that heightens awareness of the need to encourage human creativity and/or make lots of money from it must be good.