That suggests to me that they are registering the domains in their own ownership and will only give back if contacted. Surely all this is a breach of 'rights of registration' at this point in the cycle; for all anyone knows, these ROR owners are domain savvy and want to register their counterpart .uk's at the very last minute. This right is being taken away from them.
The domain has been registered to yourself using the same details as your .co.uk version...The domain does not need to be transferred to 1AND1
I thought when a registrar creates a domain, it has to be on their own tag. At least all the domains I have created using my registrar account have been on my own tag. So why are they saying the domain does not need to be transferred to 1AND1? Surely it is on that tag already? Or did they create them and detag them?
With all this domain creation without asking the customer, not charging the customer and not even putting it in their account, it looks a lot like the big registrars' motive is not so much to profit from it themselves but to reduce the pool of names for catchers.
Just received from Fasthosts Customer Support [email protected]
"Important announcement to all customers and domain registrants
Account No. xxxxxxx
Dear xxxxxx,
The rights of registration period for.uk domain names ends on 25th June 2019. Upon the launch of the new .uk domain extension in June 2014, the UK domain registry Nominet granted rights of registration to holders of existing .co.uk, .me.uk, .org.uk, .ltd.uk and .plc.uk domains and reserved the equivalent .uk versions. But with the ending of the rights of registration period, anyone can register unclaimed .uk domains from 6th July 2019.
Creating an online presence takes a lot of time and effort. If someone else registers your .uk domain, you or your organisation could be at risk of impersonation. The full impact of this is hard to estimate as it could include many elements such as time, lost sales, potential legal fees and reputational damage. While you may have a case to gain control of a .uk domain from another party, these processes are expensive and time-consuming. You could also get caught up in domain dispute processes, requiring you to demonstrate thoroughly that the domain is abusive before any action is taken by the registry.
We have also become aware that so-called "domain squatters" (who register and monetise domains associated with existing brands, organisations and individuals) are preparing to register any potentially valuable .uk domains once they are released to the public. While buying and selling domain names is not illegal, it is possible for domains to be registered in bad faith. For this reason, we have considered the impact this practice may have on our customers, who may not be fully aware of the risk it poses to themselves and their businesses. We have therefore decided that the best course of action, in our customers' interests, is for us to secure all our registrants' .uk domains for free for one year. This will prevent and limit any damage caused by third parties' uncontrollable behaviour.
Of course, if you do not want the domain it can be left to expire or cancelled with immediate effect; we just require your consent to release the domain publically prior to expiry. Alternatively, if you require the domain please email [email protected] we can verify you as the owner of the qualifying existing domain and assist you with transferring the new .uk domain to your Fasthosts account. Please note that if you take this action you will be responsible for any renewal fees for further years applied once the free first year has lapsed. You also have the ability to set the domain to expire if it is no longer required.
For a step-by-step guide, see our article on .UK Rights of Registration
Domains were secured in June 2019 and will be released back into the public pool if no claim is made.
For more information, please visit https://www.fasthosts.co.uk/uk-rights-secured
If you have any questions, please contact us.
Kind regards,
The Fasthosts Customer Support Team"
I thought the "domain squatters" paragraph was particularly daft - and I question how it is they are even able to block register all their customers' domains?
So they have squatted on the domains instead?
Also will they park the untaken .uk to earn parking revenue for themselves or not assign nameservers to them. It will be interesting to see what they do with then.