Unregged uk.com domains still display co.uk search results

[OwnThisDomain.co.uk]

Following on from my thread here earlier in the year, it appears that unused uk.com domains are still, hidden in the code behind the auto-generated page, displaying ads as though they are being generated by their co.uk counterparts.

acorndomains.uk.com takes you to a search results page which, finally, correctly states;
"This web address does not exist. You may be looking for acorndomains.co.uk. Maybe your browser made a mistake, for example by adding an extra .com to the address."
A sedo ad frame is displayed below this text.

However, when you look at the source code of the page it says;
<iframe src=http://www.sedoparking.com/search/registrar.php?registrar=taudomuk&domain=acorndomains.CO.UK

This issue has been raised several times on AD during 2011 - whenever it is raised, the resolving sedoparking.com address is corrected from domain=domainname.CO.UK to display the address actually typed in - i.e. domain=domainname.UK.COM

However, why does this supposed error, once corrected, always revert back to the original error? This is the fourth time I've noticed it this year.

Nobody from Sedo ever commented or confirmed whether there's a CPC benefit by making a click appear to come from .co.uk domains (especially popular ones) as opposed to uk.com pages.

However, if there is no difference between the value of clicks from either extension, why would anyone recreate an error on at least 4 occasions, unless it's intentional and for some sort of benefit?

Best wishes, Richard

 

[JMOT]

Why does it bother you so much??

 

[Edwin]

Why does it bother you so much??

Because it provides ammunition for somebody to try and claim "bad faith" by taking a copy of the HTML code when trademark-related links are being displayed on the page. Especially key if the owner of the REAL domain DOES NOT PARK!

 

[OwnThisDomain.co.uk]

Why does it bother you so much??

It didn't initially bother me so much but as this "error" always reappears soon after it's been fixed, it suggests that the "error" is possibly being created intentionally, maybe for a CPC benefit. And that would be underhand, to say the least.

We are in the Sedo section on AD - all it needs is for someone from Sedo to post here stating that the registrar and Sedo are not and have not received even 1 penny more by "mistakenly" making clicks appear to come from co.uks (sometimes popular high-ranking active websites) versus unused uk.coms and the matter can, at least for me, simply be put to rest.

 

[Edwin]

It didn't initially bother me so much but as this "error" always reappears soon after it's been fixed, it suggests that the "error" is possibly being created intentionally, maybe for a CPC benefit. And that would be underhand, to say the least.

It is quite definitely being created intentionally, as somebody had to manually program the link to work that way, given that it doesn't work like that for normal domains.

However, while it is despicable I doubt you'll get them to change it, there's too much money on the line preserving the status quo.

 

[foz]

Perhaps they don't want to give Google a reason to de-list .uk.com's from the organic results?

 

[Pred]

I'm a bit lost on this
what's occurring exactly?

 

[Edwin]

Somebody has struck a deal with .uk.com (or Centralnic is doing it themselves) to park all un-owned .uk.com with Sedo. However, to trigger UK-specific ads they've embedded a .co.uk equivalent domain in the iframe header.

For example...

example.uk.com would have example.co.uk hidden in the code of the iframe that summons the ads so as to pull up uk-specific ads (failing that, not enough ads would be served)

So it's a complete fudge to work around the fact that .uk.com is worthless and parking won't serve up uk-specific ads on the extension, piggy-backing off "real" (.co.uk) domains embedded in the HTML.

 

[Ashton]

Another example:

Monster.uk.com display in the header as Monster.co.uk as the iframe is linked as monster.co.uk

 

[Edwin]

Basically you can be sure they're doing this with ANY unregistered .uk.com domain (except, perhaps, if they're first using an internal "do not use" database to strip out the most egregious TM names)

 

[foz]

http://www.sedoparking.com/search/registrar.php?registrar=taudomuk&domain=money.uk.com

Rubbish listings.

http://www.sedoparking.com/search/registrar.php?registrar=taudomuk&domain=money.co.uk

In the money.

Surely this is against Google's TOS?

 

[Edwin]

http://www.sedoparking.com/search/registrar.php?registrar=taudomuk&domain=money.uk.com

Rubbish listings.

http://www.sedoparking.com/search/registrar.php?registrar=taudomuk&domain=money.co.uk

In the money.

Surely this is against Google's TOS?

It will be in the near future (when all domains will have to use the parking provider's DNS rather than forwarding). Unless, of course, Sedo is explicitly willing to collude by setting up the same arrangement on their own servers. But that should become blatantly obvious come October 1st (or whatever the cutoff date was for moving to DNS-based parking from URL forwarding)

 

[JMOT]

you seem to have an axe to grind edwin....

 

[Ashton]

My point about the monster one is monster is a generic term yet the uk.com advertises jobs because it uses the .co.uk on the iframe url:

http://www.sedoparking.com/search/registrar.php?registrar=taudomuk&domain=monster.uk.com
http://www.sedoparking.com/search/registrar.php?registrar=taudomuk&domain=monster.co.uk

Clearly trading off the brand. So there are so many cases of this where the uk.com is trading off the .co.uk, I am surprised they are getting away with this.

 

[Edwin]

you seem to have an axe to grind edwin....

Of course I do. Whoever's behind the deal with .uk.com is squatting on all our 6,500+ .co.uk domains, and on all your domains, and on everyone else's domains, with their fake-domain forwarding setup.

 

[Pred]

very naughty indeed

why would sedo risk this as providers have been sued before

i mean, how many people type in domains with a .uk.com suffix?

geez , even generic .co.uk get LOW enough traffic tbh
even one word .coms can get amazingly low traffic

it sounds like a 'cool' or 'sneaky' deal they have done and probably patted themselves on the back but in actual fact i bet it's illegal and I bet they are getting pencil shavings from in it in reality