URL Resolution

Domain Name Creation

Thinking about the potential use of a candidate name as domain name is integrated into our name creation and trademark search process. Careful consideration of the use of candidate names online is important in so many ways, such as:

• Is the name be available as a URL?
• How will this name perform as an organic search term?
• Is prior name use online an instance of common law name use?
• If someone else owns the exact .com, how can we provide an alternative URL?

Domain name searching is integrated into our search process. Reviewing name usage online is important both as an additional example of common law name use, and for naming projects where our client requires a domain name.

When creating names for the Internet, we are guided by these important principles and values:

• We will not employ unconventional spelling to achieve domain name availability. We greatly prefer to secure not only the natural, obvious spelling of the name we want, but any potential misspellings, when choosing a URL.
• We will not sacrifice name meaning or relevance to domain name length or availability. In our view, a slightly longer domain name is preferable to a marginally shorter, but less meaningful and relevant, name.
• If the exact dot-com is not available for an excellent new name we have created, we will recommend combining our new name with a second relevant descriptor or word-part, in order to achieve URL availability. We believe this is preferable to choosing a less attractive new name, to achieve an available URL.
• In our client's goal is to build a strong brand, we advise against the adoption of generics or near-generics as their company or domain name. We far prefer the ownable, brandable virtualvineyard.com to wine.com, for example.

Domain Name Acquisition

As important aspect of our Name Advocacy practice is domain name investigation and acquisition. This can be as straightforward as creating several variations of a Recommended name, employing different add-on words in order to achieve an available URL. Or, it can be as involved as investigating of the current owner of a URL, including figuring out how to reached a masked owner, in order to conduct an acquisition negotiation.

In most cases, Master-McNeil's representation of our clients in these transactions succeeds obscuring who they are, resulting in a far lower price than if our client conducted the negotiation on their own or been represented by counsel. We do not obscure our own identity, instead presenting ourselves as the creators of the name under consideration.

Occasionally we are engaged just to conduct these investigations and negotiations. More often they are performed at the conclusion of a new name development process.

© 2008 Master-McNeil, Inc. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
All rights reserved.