Andersons Solicitors Nottingham advises businesses to register .eu domain to beat the cyber squatters

Businesses in Nottinghamshire are being warned they only have a month left to register for the new .eu website domains or risk having their firm’s name hijacked by cyber squatters.

The squatters are people who buy new domain names for thousands of firms and then hold those firms to ransom by demanding a fortune to sell the names back.

It’s taken six years to turn the .eu domain names into a reality. Soon they will take their place alongside national web addresses such as .uk.

Andrew Kelly, managing partner at Andersons Solicitors in Nottingham, says the .eu domain will be particularly important for the growing number of firms with a strong presence in Europe.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity for firms to emphasise their pan-European credentials by hosting an .eu website and using it in their email address.

“The problem is that it’s also a good opportunity for cyber squatters to step in and snap up the domain names of unsuspecting firms. It has happened in the past and it’s likely to happen again this time.”

The .eu domains go on general sale on April 7 but the European Commission is allowing firms with a recognised right to a name to register it now to prevent it being bought by anybody else next month.

“This option is only open to firms who can prove a prior right to the name such as a trademark holder. Firms who can prove such a prior right should register as soon as possible,” said Mr Kelly.

“Those who can’t, perhaps smaller firms who feel an .eu domain might be useful to them in future as they grow, should make sure they’re first in the queue on April 7.”

An independent organisation EURid - the European Registry of Internet Domain Names - has been selected by the European Commission to operate the new registry for .eu. Details of how to register can be found on http://www.eurid.eu/en/general/

We produce FREE monthly electronic newsletters including; Private Client, Commercial and Employment Law. You can register for your copy online from our website www.andersonssolicitors.co.uk or e-mail Carly Williams.