Sex.com And VeriSign Settle Many Years Later
from the is-the-story-finally-over dept
The Sex.com legal fights started soon after we started Techdirt almost seven years ago - and we've followed the case on an ongoing basis. First, there was the battle over the domain name itself, and whether it belonged to the guy who originally registered it, or the person who forged some documents to take it away. However, the more interesting element of the case was always the legal battle with VeriSign (really, at the time, Network Solutions) over whether or not they were responsible for handing over the domain without any proof that it should have been done. Last year, the Court of Appeals ruled that VeriSign could be sued for transferring the domain without permission of the rightful owner, basically admitting that domains are property of those who registered them - and not simply under the complete control of VeriSign/Network Solutions. Now, realizing that put them in a difficult position, it looks like VeriSign has agreed to settle the lawsuit with Sex.com - though, details aren't given - suggesting that this legal battle may finally be over.
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
