Domain Name Purchase Agreement
The internet is the lifeblood of many businesses these days and the domain is the foundation. A domain name purchase agreement is key to making sure your foundation is in good shape.
Domain Names
A domain is similar to a marriage. Once you use it for your business, you need to keep on using it. Customers and clients will come to know your business by your domain name. If you try to change it at some later point, you run the risk of losing a lot of your clients as they will be unable to find you.
If you know the importance of a domain, you probably have spent a good bit of time hunting down the perfect one. If you are lucky, you can buy the domain directly from a registrar such as godaddy.com. In such a situation, you do not need a domain name purchase agreement. Ah, but what if you buy it from another person or company? Then you definitely need a domain name purchase agreement to protect yourself by creating evidence that the sale actually took place.
So, what is a domain name purchase agreement? It is basically what it sounds like. It is a written document evidencing the sale of the domain from one party to another. The document is important because you need to be able to show a court that the transfer actually took place should there ever be a dispute. You would be surprised how often disputes arise when the original owner has second thoughts about the transfer.
The typical domain name purchase agreement sets out certain terms. They include the parties involved, a warranty that the party owns and has the right to sell the domain, the date of the sale, the purchase price and potential remedies if there are problems. Most domain transactions are also handled through escrow. An account is opened with an online escrow agent. You contribute the money for the purchase. Once it is in the account, the seller then transfers the domain. This helps avoid problems related to who transferred what and when they did it.
Before you rush off to purchase a domain name from someone, make sure you do a trademark search. The fact someone else owns it does not mean it has passed a trademark inspection. This is particularly true if the person has no or a simple website up on the domain.
If you are selling or purchasing a domain and need a purchase agreement, contact me for a quote at 619-637-6043.
Richard
