Even without .com domains, sites can continue to operate.
You can take away a domain name, but you can’t stop people from visiting a web site.
Yesterday’s seizure of five poker company domain names is another case in point.
Still want to get your fix of Poker Stars? Just go to PokerStars.eu.
It reminds me of when online gambling site Bodog ran into legal problems. The solution? Change the URL from Bodog.com to NewBodog.com.
Sure, it lost some players as a result. But a domain name is simply a pointing device. It makes it easier to visit a site than entering an IP address, so they aren’t necessary to visit a web site.
There’s even a plugin specifically designed to help people looking for domains seized in recent ICE cases. The plugin forwards users to a mirror site.
Joe says
ccTLDs are the solution to the .com seizures. It reminds me of when Demonoid.com was confiscated and the website was quickly moved to Demonoid.me
names says
@Joe
Interesting and true, but .COM will still rule for the other 99% of the major companies and websites that do not violate US banking/fraud laws.
(note: I don’t agree with the seizures, but I’m also not going to make a big deal over a few isolated, abnormal instances)
Devon Chappell says
Do you know for a fact if PokerStars.eu is allowing U.S. players to login? I would be surprised if they are or can.