Domain Name Found to Be a Contract Right

In a case of first impression, a group of domain name holders sued Register.com because it had automatically renewed the plaintiffs’ domain names. The First Department found that a domain name that is not trademarked is nothing more than a contract right and that Register.com’s action did not violate General Obligations Law §5-903 which renders unenforceable automatic renewal provisions in contracts pertaining to the maintenance of real or personal property. The court found also that Register.com’s conduct was not deceptive because it had complied with the agreement between the parties but that plaintiffs may not have received notice of certain allowable changes because plaintiffs’ e-mail addresses had not bee updated.