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?
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:
Time will only tell if the domain get’s renewed or if they simply will lose the domain for it hitting expired status.
Reece Berg
Nice detective work there Jamie!
I still can’t understand why some companies don’t take better care of their domains — heck, paying someone a full-time salary *just* to make sure their domains get renewed every year would be a great investment for a company this size and all it stands to lose if the wrong domains expire on them…
Jamie Zoch
Thanks Reece. I agree what you are speaking about! One thing I didn’t really write about due to it just being a “guess”… Since the “last update” according to whois was in May, makes me think that maybe they Turned Off Auto-Renew then? It’s hard to say but it wasn’t that long ago (likely when they got a notification from the registrar) with the update of some kind.
James
Why dont people with the sort of money CNN has just renew the domain for ten years?
James
Anthony
Good find Jamie … thanks.
LazyDomaining
@James
Same thoughts here. Just doesn’t make sense. Renewing for 10years is not a bad idea for such premium names.
Jamie Zoch
@LazyDomaining
Well, the domain could of easily been renewed 10yrs ago, for 10 yrs.. but having an expired CC on file can prevent domain renewal. Yes renewal messages can be sent, but A Lot of people have spam blockers set up which catch many renewal notices.