Turner Broadcasting which owns the popular news network CNN understands the net and knows it’s important to have great generic domain names and domains to match the popular shows it carries, but they let one slip…for now at least.

Coldwar.com is a domain name CNN owns and they have let the domain registration period hit expired status.

CNN spent a reported $750,000 on iReport.com from past owner Rick Schwartz, they spent some cash to buy AC360.com for Anderson Cooper’s show but when they already own a valuable domain name.. they don’t renew it? Don’t try to sell it?

Coldwar Domain Name

People were blasting Yahoo for selling Contests.com for $380,000 but what happens when a company potentally will get near to nothing for a valuable domain!

CNN has until about July 15 to renew the domain and maintain ownership, but if you read the registrar TOS, they already hold a great chance of losing the domain by allowing it to expire.

If a customer does not renew the domain name registration by the expiration date, the domain name registration is subject to deletion at any time after that

This is likely an oversight and will get renewed, but it should really never reach this point. Here is a screen shot of the whois to prove CNN / Turner Broadcasting owns it:

Coldwar.com Whois

Time will only tell if the domain get’s renewed or if they simply will lose the domain for it hitting expired status.