[registrars] Network Solutions Settles FTC Charges
Bruce Tonkin
Bruce.Tonkin at melbourneit.com.au
Tue Sep 30 01:36:37 UTC 2003
See also:
http://www.ftc.gov/os/2003/09/networksolutionsstip.pdf
For the final court order.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Bruce Tonkin
> Sent: Tuesday, 30 September 2003 11:01 AM
> To: Registrars Constituency
> Subject: [registrars] Network Solutions Settles FTC Charges
>
>
> From: http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2003/09/networksolutions.htm
>
>
> Network Solutions Settles FTC Charges
>
> False Solicitations Allegedly Duped Consumers to Transfer
> Domain Name Registrations
>
> Network Solutions, Inc. has settled Federal Trade Commission
> charges that its deceptive marketing practices unlawfully
> tricked consumers into transferring their Internet domain
> name registrations to the company. The terms of the
> settlement permanently bar Network Solutions from
> misrepresenting that a consumer's domain name is about to
> expire or that the transfer of a domain name is actually a
> renewal. The order also requires the defendant to pay
> consumer redress pursuant to the terms of a previously
> settled class action lawsuit.
>
> Network Solutions is the largest of more than 100 companies
> that compete to provide domain name registration services to
> consumers. These companies, called "registrars," help
> consumers establish the addresses for their Internet Web
> sites. Consumers choose a second-level domain name for
> generic top-level domain names such as .com, .net., and .org
> (e.g. www.networksolutions.com) and Network Solutions
> registers that domain name with the appropriate "registry."
>
> The FTC's complaint alleges that, as part of its marketing
> campaign, Network Solutions mailed solicitation notices to
> consumers that appeared to be expiration notices from the
> consumers' current registrars. The notices allegedly stated
> that consumers' domain names were about to expire, and that
> Network Solutions was offering to "renew" their domain names
> for a fee.
>
> The FTC alleges that these notices were deceptive for two
> reasons. First, the notices claimed that the consumers'
> domain names would soon expire, but failed to disclose the
> actual expiration dates of the consumers' domain names -
> which were, in some cases, months or years in the future.
> Second, the notices offered to "renew" the consumers' domain
> names without disclosing either the identity of the
> consumers' then-current registrars or that accepting the
> offer would cause the domain name to be transferred to
> Network Solutions. The FTC charges that the notices tricked
> some consumers into transferring their domain name
> registrations to Network Solutions - often at a significantly
> higher price.
>
> The stipulated order permanently prohibits the defendant from
> misrepresenting that: a consumer's domain name registration
> is about to expire; the expiration date of a registration is
> near or on the date by which a consumer must respond to the
> Network Solutions solicitation; and that the transfer of a
> domain name registration is only a renewal. The settlement
> also requires the defendant to state clearly and
> conspicuously in any written or oral communication with
> consumers the date on which the consumer's registration will
> expire. The order also requires Network Solutions to pay
> consumer redress in accordance with a class action lawsuit it
> recently settled. Finally, the settlement contains standard
> recordkeeping provisions to assist the FTC in monitoring the
> defendants' compliance. At the time that the solicitations
> that are the subject of the FTC's charges were mailed, the
> company was doing business under the name "VeriSign."
>
> The Commission vote authorizing staff to file the stipulated
> final order was 4-0-1, with Commissioner Pamela Jones Harbour
> not participating. The order was filed in the U.S. District
> Court for the District of Columbia on September 11, 2003, and
> was entered by Judge Ricardo M. Urbino on September 12.
>
> NOTE: This stipulated judgment and order is for settlement
> purposes only and does not constitute an admission by the
> defendant of a law violation. Stipulated judgments and orders
> have the force of law when signed by the judge.
>
> Copies of the stipulated judgment and order are available
> from the FTC's Web site at http://www.ftc.gov and also from
> the FTC's Consumer Response Center, Room 130, 600
> Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20580. The FTC
> works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and
> unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide
> information to help consumers spot, stop, and avoid them. To
> file a complaint, or to get free information on any of 150
> consumer topics, call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP
> (1-877-382-4357), or use the complaint form at
> http://www.ftc.gov. The FTC enters Internet, > telemarketing,
> identity theft, and other fraud-related complaints into
> Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to
> hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in
> the U.S. and abroad.
>
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