After writing an update to the blacklisting post, I stumbled upon an honor that I can only categorize as dubious. This site is apparently popular enough to warrant registering similar domains to take advantage of traffic resulting from URL typos.
www.matthewktabor.cm [.cm is the domain extension for Cameroon] has been registered by and 301-redirects to agoga.com, a web advertising firm with the following mission:
WE ARE
Our team is comprised of professionals with a vast amount of experience in both online and offline businesses. In particular, our many years of combined experience have allowed us to remain leaders and innovators in the online industry.WHAT WE DO
We provide ccTLD controllers with a way to earn revenue from the otherwise unused segment of the ccTLD using our professional technological solutions. We provide the ccTLD controller with carefully designed landing pages that contain relevant, sponsored links, in response to queries directed to the Unregistered segment of the ccTLD. Our search engine also allows end-users to do keyword searches based on their topic of interest. It is this level of customization and optimization that allows us to monetize the Unregistered segment of the ccTLD to its fullest potential.
In short, they’re web-leeches who try to make a buck off typos in popular domains. It’s kind of like Weird Al covering a song you’ve written, but agoga isn’t funny, awesome, or entertaining in the least. A dubious honor for sure.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
The Science Goddess 06.09.07 at 10:48 pm
Speaking of domain issues…
My blog has a new URL: http://whatitslikeontheinside.com Blogger may not redirect nor blogrolls automatically update.
I hope you’ll stop by soon.
Matthew 06.10.07 at 3:05 am
Thanks for the heads up – I’ve updated the blogroll.
goatload 06.11.07 at 11:56 am
Man, what an ass!! That sucks that this kind of stuff happens… I’ve never known it to happen to someone I know… Is there anything you can do to get the domain yourself or something?
Matthew 06.11.07 at 2:57 pm
It’s a form of domain squatting: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_squatting
At this point, it doesn’t bother me too much, but if they turn it into a porn site or something… well, then I’d have to pursue it.