Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is a Domain Name ?
   A Domain Name is an electronic Internet address. It's the way that anyone, anywhere in the world, can find your web-site on the Internet. Every Domain Name is absolutely unique ... there is only one of each name world-wide, and that's what makes some names so valuable.
    
2. Do I have to be on the Internet to purchase a Domain Name ?
   No ... many people purchase Domain Names for future use or investment purposes. As we said, there's only one of each name, so we advise you to register the name/s you want now (many people are registering their business or company name, their slogan and in some cases, their address). If you don't have a web-site at this time, then we'll "park" your name, free of charge, at our site.
    
3. How much does a Domain Name registration cost ?
   The official price for world-wide Domain Names (ie: www.yourname.com or .net or .org) is normally US$70 for a 2 year registration, however, at Domain Names Head Office you save money. Our prices are listed on our Fees page, and unlike some registrars, we don't charge extra handling fees, etc. The price we quote is the total you pay! (Discount rates are available on bulk purchases - Please email us with your requirements).
   
   Note: We also register .ST names as follows: www.YourName.St
   Names with the suffix ".st" can be quite valuable and have great novelty value. Can you imagine owning www.Wall.St or www.Carnaby.St (by the way, both of these names have already been registered, but use your imagination, or register your own street address).
   Prices for .ST names are listed on our Fees page.
   (Please submit 4 names to us by email, in order of preference, and we will reply advising availability of chosen names).
   
   In addition, we have recently added .ca (Canada), .co.uk & .org.uk (United Kingdom), .biz, .info, .cc and .tv Domain Names.
   .vc has been delayed, awaiting ICANN to complete their procedures.
    
4. Do I own my Domain Name ?
   Normally speaking, YES - when you register a Domain Name you have exclusive rights to that name, and it cannot be used or registered by anyone else without your written permission. You should be aware, however, that anyone holding copyright or trademark registration over the words used in your name may be able to claim the name in court. You should make your own enquiries and satisfy yourself as to the legalities before registering or purchasing a name (a link is provided to http://tess.uspto.gov/bin/gate.exe?f=login&p_lang=english&p_d=trmk for your convenience).
    
5. Some registrars are advising that Domain Names are limited to 23 characters. How can Domain Names Head Office register longer names ?
   Many registrars have not updated their software and consequently are still confined to the old limit. At Domain Names Head Office, as official Registration Service Providers (RSPs) we accept names up to the legal limit of 63 characters, plus .com - Note: Names must start and finish with a letter or digit, and internal characters may only be letters and/or digits and/or hyphen.
    
6. Is a Domain Name a good investment ?
   Unfortunately, we are not licensed to give advice on investments. However, we can say that many people do invest in domain names. We can also say that with only 28,000 words in the standard English dictionary, it's obvious that we ran out of desirable one-word names long ago, and the race is on to register attractive combinations.
   
   Many Domain Names have been sold for enormous sums of money, and the person who sold a Texas businessman the name of business.com for $15,000 three years ago, probably thought he'd received a great return on his investment. The Texas businessman recently sold that name for $7.5 million and "Boy, did he make a good investment!".
   
   Good names are a finite resource, they cannot be replaced and we believe should continue to rise in value. However, the market sets the price, and whilst desirable names will probably always rise, unattractive names will probably remain unattractive. Then again, how much would you have paid for "GoFish", "AltaVista" or "Ibid" ... not terribly attractive names to some ... but obviously very, very valuable today.
   
   It was recently reported that the "Industrial Bank of Korea" has begun accepting Domain Names as collateral against loans of up to US$25,000 ... You work it out!
    
7. How do I sell an investment name ?
   It's easy. Simply complete the details on our relevant page, and we'll list the name, and the asking price, on our "FOR SALE" page, and actively promote and market your name to potential buyers. We handle all negotiations between you and the buyer, and for your protection, we broker the transfer of the funds and the name between both parties.
    
8. Why can't I transact the sale myself ?
   You can.  However, first you have to find a buyer, and then you have no protection and no guarantee that you'll actually be paid. Do you sign over the name first (and hope you get your money), or do you expect the buyer to blindly send you the money (and hope that they in turn get the name)? As an intermediary broker, Domain Names Head Office acts on behalf of both parties, thus ensuring a speedy, safe and trouble-free transaction.
    
9. How do I know my name or money is protected ?
   The ownership of the name remains with the seller until such time as we advise Internic or the appropriate regulatory body, to change the ownership details. We don't do this until the buyer has paid all funds into the Domain Names Head Office bank trust account, and we have been advised by the bank that all funds are cleared. Secondly, the seller is required to advise the regulatory body that the final stage of the transfer process is authorized, and they don't do this until Domain Names Head Office confirms that the funds have been banked and cleared. Conversely, in order to protect the buyer, Domain Names Head Office does not release the funds to the seller until 7 days after the regulatory body has publicly displayed the Domain Name as being recorded in the purchaser's name. This can be confirmed by doing a "WhoIs" search, which displays the current registered owner.
    
10. What fees are involved in buying and selling existing Domain Names ?
    There are no fees for listing, and the total fee payable to Domain Names Head Office by the seller is 10% of the sale price if and when the sale is completed. The total payable by the buyer is the agreed purchase price, plus the standard registration fee for the minimum period as required by the regulatory body (currently up to US$35 for 1 year in the case of a world-wide Domain Name).
    Note: Please also see our "Conditions of Contract" and "Terms of Sale and Purchase".
     
11. How do I pay when registering a new Domain Name ?
    Simply complete the credit card details online, and your payment will be processed by our secure server. If applying offline, print out the application form, complete your credit card details and fax or email us. We regret that cheques cannot be accepted due to international processing taking up to 4 weeks.
     
12. Do you have an affiliate or reseller program ?
    Yes.
    Computer Retailers and other businesses are invited to apply for our very generous reseller terms and conditions.
    Website owners can earn big money by simply displaying our banner.
    Anyone can earn commissions by simply displaying your unique "Domain Names Head Office" link address in your email signature.
    Please click here for further details.
     
13. Can I park my name/s on your servers ?
    Yes. Our default nameservers provide a FREE parking service for newly registered names. When listing your name/s for sale, we will point them to a special "For Sale" promotions page (this is also a FREE service).
     
14. Do I have to host my name/s with you ?
    No. You may host your domain name with any company you choose. Simply enter the relevant nameserver details when you register the domain, or complete the "Modify Domain" form if already registered. We carry out the modification free of charge, and the domain will normally be redelegated within 24 hours.
     
15. Will you advise me when a requested modification has been carried out ?
    Normally no. However, you may specifically request a fax or email confirmation if required (a fee of US$10 applies - please quote your credit card details with request).
     
16. Will I receive an invoice/paperwork from you after registering a name ?
    No. Your registration will be confirmed by an auto-generated email, and subject to system conditions, will normally be processed immediately. Please note that it can sometimes take up to 24 hours for new registrations to display in a "WhoIs" search.
     
17. Can I cancel or change a name after I register it ?
    No. However, we will be happy to list the name "For Sale" for you.
     
18. Why does "WhoIs" say a name is available, when your "Search & Register" says it's not ?
    "Search & Register" displays real time availability, whilst updating of "WhoIs" can run behind time. Please note that due to occasional link congestion and system outages, we cannot guarantee registration of names applied for, and no liability can or will be accepted.
     
19. What happens at the end of my registration period ?
    We will invite you to renew, and we anticipate that the price for renewals may fall. Please note that it is important you keep us updated on your current email and contact details. If you don't specifically authorize us to renew your name, it will lapse.
     
20. Do you have a domain or email forwarding service, and do you develop web-pages ?
    Yes. Please our Additional Services for current rates.
     
21. What is domain forwarding ?
    Domain Forwarding (also called URL forwarding) is where your domain name is redirected to any existing web-space of your choice. This could be free web-space, the space made available to you from your local ISP or purchased space (such as SkyBiz). You have a choice in our Additional Services of 'URL Forwarding with advertising' and 'URL Forwarding without advertising'.
     
22. What is email forwarding ?
    Email Forwarding is where any email sent to your domain name is redirected an existing email account of your choice (such as your existing account with your local ISP).
    

Please email us with other specific questions.