Webs Wonder Design

A domain name and website are now recognised legally as important assets of a company, but businesses which think they own both, often don’t…

A few years ago I was the chairman of the short-lived website developers organization “Web Pro Wales”. The lofty aim of WPW was to encourage and develop best practice in both the way we deal with our clients and the websites and software we sell them. I spent many hours in discussion with a small group of founder businesses trying to decide on the list of standards our members should either have already achieved, or should be working towards. Many of the proposed standards were contentious resulting in extended debate, but one was not. In essence it was that:

Unless specifically requested otherwise, domain names purchased on behalf of a client by the developer should always be registered using the name, address and contact details of the client.

In other words, never, ever, register clients’ domains in your own or your business’ name, because if you do, you will own the domain that they have paid for.

Domain ownership is not a trivial or merely technical matter. Ownership confers almost total control over the usage of that domain, including the right to sell it to anyone for any price, rent it, or simply “cyber-sit”, doing nothing at all with it.

I was reminded of this principle last week when I received a request to re-develop a website for a holiday cottage business on the West Wales coast. I thought I had better check when their domain needed renewing and so did a “WHOIS” database lookup using www.scl.co.uk/domains

I was surprised to find that the domain was registered as owned by their former website development company Wales Tourists Online, based in Bangor, North Wales. I emailed the company and explained that I was putting together a proposal for a new site and asked how much they would sell the domain for.

Bearing in mind that a .co.uk domain costs only £5 a year to keep renewed, and Wales Tourists Online had had a 6 year, and presumably good, relationship with my client, I expected a reply saying a tenner or some nominal amount for a domain which is of no use to them, as it refers to someone else’s business. The reply I got from Wales Tourists Online was a shock. It stated simply:

“The domain name is for sale @ £500.00″.

I replied, offering £75 for the domain and received this response from a Tony Thomas of Wales Tourists Online:

“We are no longer willing to sell the name. Should they choose us to host it we would be willing to let them use the domain free of charge”

Hosting with them he said would cost £120 a year.

I then did a Google Search for Wales Tourists Online and looked at the domain name registrations of some of their customers. Below is a sample of what I found. The domain names of a significant number of sites hosted by Wales Tourists Online are not owned by the business owner, but by Wales Tourists Online, just as my new client’s had been.

Any business which finds its domain name registered in the name of their hosting or website design company please be warned. Everything may be fine now, but if you decide to move, you might find it difficult, or expensive to do so with your current domain name.

The UK Domain Name registration body - Nominet - does have a dispute resolution service however there are hefty fees involved and it can take months. Certain specialist lawyers will also take up your case, but at £350+ per letter, that’s not cheap either. For my client, the simplest and least expensive solution was to buy a new domain (£30 for a .com and £10 for a .co.uk) and develop a new site at this location. Should they wish to move hosting company or change their website designer in the future, they have the power to do so, completely free of charge.

The Domain Name Lookups below were made on 13th December 2007. Current registration details can be checked at www.scl.co.uk/domains.

Llys Olwen

www.llysolwen.co.uk

Morfa Nefyn,
Gwynedd.
LL53 6BT

Domain name:
llysolwen.co.uk

Registrant:
Wales Tourists Online.

Registrant’s address:
Unit 8
BridgeGate Trading Mews
Bridgegate
Retford
Notts
DN22 7XB

Nant Newydd Caravan Park

www.nantnewydd.co.uk

Brynteg,
Benllech,
Isle of Anglesey
LL78 7JJ.

Domain name:
nantnewydd.co.uk

Registrant:
Wales Tourists Online.

Registrant’s address:
Unit 8
BridgeGate Trading Mews
Bridgegate
Retford
Notts
DN22 7XB

Glyn y Coed Hotel

www.glynycoedhotel.co.uk

Portmadog Rd,
Criccieth,
Gwynedd,
North Wales
LL52 OHL

Domain name:
glynycoedhotel.co.uk

Registrant:
Tony Thomas

Registrant’s address:
9 Swn Yr Engan
Gaerwen
Anglesey
LL60 6LS

Cwmanog Isaf Farm B&B

www.cwmanogisaffarmholidays.co.uk

Betws-y-Coed,
Gwynedd,
LL24 0SL

Domain name:
cwmanogisaffarmholidays.co.uk

Registrant:
Wales Tourists Online.

Registrant’s address:
Unit 8
BridgeGate Trading Mews
Bridgegate
Retford
Notts
DN22 7XB

The Oasis Hotel

www.oasis-hotel.co.uk

Nevill Crescent,
Central Promenade,
Llandudno,
North Wales

Domain name:
oasis-hotel.co.uk

Registrant:
Wales Tourists Online.

Registrant’s address:
9 Swn Yr Engan
Gaerwen
Anglesey
LL60 6LS

Dwy Olwyn Guest House

www.dwyolwyn.co.uk

Coed-y-Fronallt,
Dolgellau,
Gwynedd,
LL40 2YG

Domain name:
dwyolwyn.co.uk

Registrant:
Tony Thomas T/A Wales Tourists Online.

Registrant’s address:
9 Swn y egan
Gaerwen
Anglesey
LL60 6LS

Henllan Mill

www.henllanmill.co.uk

Llangynyw,
Welshpool,
Powys,
SY21 9EN

Domain name:
henllanmill.co.uk

Registrant:
Wales Tourists Online.

Registrant’s address:
9 Swn Yr Engan
Gaerwen
Anglesey
LL60 6LS

Garnedd Holiday Cottages

www.garneddholidaycottages.co.uk

Garnedd Ddu Holiday Cottages
Star,
Gaerwen,
Isle of Anglesey
Sir Fôn,
LL60 6AN

Domain name:
garneddholidaycottages.co.uk

Registrant:
Wales Tourists Online.

Registrant’s address:
9 Swn Yr Engan
Gaerwen
Anglesey
LL60 6LS

Pandy Cottage B&B

www.pandybar.co.uk

Llanfechell
Nr Cemaes Bay
Anglesey North Wales
LL68 0SW

Domain name:
pandybar.co.uk

Registrant:
Tony Thomas

Registrant’s address:
9 Swn Yr Engan
Gaerwen, Anglesey
Gaerwen
Anglesey
LL60 6LS

Dolgelynen Farmhouse B&B

www.dolgelynenfarmhouse.co.uk

Dolgelynen Farmhouse
Machynlleth,
Powys,
SY20 9JR

Domain name:
dolgelynenfarmhouse.co.uk

Registrant:
Wales Tourists Online.

Registrant’s address:
9 Swn Yr Engan
Gaerwen
Anglesey
LL60 6LS

Bryn Glo Guest House and Tea Room

www.bryn-glo.com

Capel Curig
Snowdonia
Conwy
LL24 0DT

Domain name:
bryn-glow.com

Registrant:
Thomas, Tony
Registrant’s address:
9 Swn Yr Engan
Gaerwen
Anglesey
LL60 6LS

Seaspray Guest House

www.seasprayguesthouse.co.uk

4 Marine Terrace
Criccieth
Gwynedd
North Wales
LL52 OEF

Domain name:
seasprayguesthouse.co.uk

Registrant:
Wales Tourists Online
9 Swn Yr Engan
Gaerwen
Anglesey
LL60 6LS

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I went to Cardiff Bay on Friday to take some pictures of The National Assembly for Wales “Senedd” Building for a website I’m currently working on. I was lucky with the weather - I hadn’t checked before I went.

The Senedd doesn’t sit on Fridays - the Assembly Members (AM’s) hold their constituency surgeries that day. Maybe that was why the docks area was so eerily quiet. I’m not complaining, the lack of people made it possible to take some good panoramic photos. People moving across the scene often appear as ghosts, or in more than one place at once!

The photos which went to make up the shots below were taken with my Lumix DMC FZ10 on a tripod and combined into a montage. The first photo is taken from the centre of the Oval Basin. It is a 360º panorama starting and ending at the former dock entrance with the Millenium Centre towards the middle and the red brick Bute Dock Building to the right. The finished photo is 1,600 pixels high by 15,000 wide, the one below being a fraction of that. Just scroll sideways to see the full Panorama.

In certain browsers the picture will appear very wide and narrow. Simply click on the image to make it expand.

Please Note: These photos are copyright ©Webs Wonder Design. High resolution versions are available for use under a Rights Managed / Rights Reserved license (ie for specific named projects). Please contact me with usage requests.

Here is one just of the Millenium Centre. The slate-faced part of the building to the right is not curve-fronted like the main facade, it’s just the result of the panoramic shot. Also that the silver tower on the left did not have water cascading down it when I took the shot, which means that the reflection of the surrounding buildings is better and the sun is mirrored, refecting lines across the concourse.

Below is the Welsh Assembly Senedd Building with the Pierhead Building to the left.

Below is the entrance hall/concourse of the Senedd Building. At this level is the Public Gallery. On the level below is the Senedd debating chamber and on the level above is situated seating and a refreshments area.

From the floor of the top level - above the Senedd Chamber - the roof springs organically.

Below is the Senedd Chamber - viewed from the Public Gallery.

Below that is the debating chamber.

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The website I designed for Adam Price MP has won the British Computer Society’s “Best MP’s Website Award“.

The BCS president and head of the judging panel Nigel Shadbolt described the site as “an outstanding example” of design, engagement and accessibility.

You can browse every UK MP’s website to compare and contrast. If that’s not enough excitement for you, how about the website of every Member of the European Parliament.

Many members of the Welsh Assembly Government have websites but I can’t find a simple list of them. There is however a novel sales pitch which many have taken part in, otherwise known as a video biography. I think they need to be as innovative as Plaid election broadcasts before they’ll make it on to YouTube.

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I took a friend to St Davids in Pembrokeshire yesterday. Britain’s smallest city, but with a wow! cathedral set with a backdrop of farms and fields and only a stone’s throw from the craggy Pembrokeshire coastline. A couple of miles beyond the hill in the distance is the sea. Click on the images for larger ones. If you would like to use any of the photos (also available high resolution for printing), please contact me for terms and conditions.

Update 27th February 2008

Took another trip to St Davids today on a blissfully clear and warm day to update my photo collection. The cathedral looked spectacular. They must mow the grass at least weekly as every time I’m here it looks beautifully manicured. With only 3 days to go to St David’s Day on March 1st (The Patron Saint of Wales), there is an extra splash of colour with house windows being decorated with flags and daffodils and leeks.
Continue reading Wow! St Davids Cathedral Pembrokeshire

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Politicians never lie. They use “terminological inexactitudes” or are “economical with the truth” and might even “seek to to mislead”, but lying they don’t, because it is not allowed in Parliament for one politician to call another a liar . The public, however are not constrained by such conventions. They soon become aware that they have been grossly misled or told deliberate half truths (or double-truths if you are an accountant like PM Gordon Brown) and they then brand all Politicians as “liars” - which they are not. The small number of lying politicians bring the whole profession into disrepute. Most Cabinet Ministers it seems have trained as lawyers, so their command of language seems to equip them perfectly for the techniques of putting an unhealthy gloss on the the actuality.
Continue reading At last, The Misrepresentation of the People Act

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