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Madison, WI

Hi there. Recently it was brought to our attention that several chip store owners, us included, have had their alternate domains purchased. These domains are now forwarding to another store (Update, the redirects have been changed to point to a Google search of kitsch-bent's website, see thread for details on that)

Here are the sites I know of so far that have had their alternate domains purchased and redirected:

Nonfinite Electronics
Thursday Customs
ASM Retro
Handheld Legend

In all three cases .net, .org, and .co alternate domains have been purchased and a redirect has been added to point elsewhere.

All of these domains are presently forwarding to kitsch-bent . com. (Update, the redirects have been changed to point to a Google search of kitsch-bent's website, see thread for details on that)

I have reached out to Matt Edwards, the owner of kitsch bent for comment but have yet to hear back. (Update, Matt has responded. see thread for details)

--------------------------------------

I have started an initiative to help other store owners in the realm of chipmusic to get their alternate domains locked down so this does not happen to them as well.

(Update: I now have reports from four separate store owners who have successfully secured their alternate domains as a result of this initiative.)

In the interest of reaching out to as many store owners as I can, I would like to ask for your help compiling a list of known vendors. I will personally be emailing these vendors to offer my assistance in securing any alternate domains if they are left open.

If you know of a vendor site that would like assistance with purchasing an alternate domain but does not wish to advertise their presence here for fear that they too might have their alt domains grabbed before they can do so themselves, you can email me at [email protected].

I will be publishing more details on this soon. Stay [chip]tuned.

-Nonfinite Electronics

Last edited by NonElectronics (Mar 10, 2016 11:39 pm)

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Madison, WI

Based on these recent activities Nonfinite LLC has decided to begin preparations to move to a new domain, which has been purchased as of this morning.

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Madison, WI

Add Handheld Legend to the list of redirected sites.

.net .org and .co

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This topic is a little disingenuous.

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Madison, WI

Can you assist in a relevant renaming of the title, Peter? I'm working as quickly as I can here.

Perhaps "Numerous chiptune stores redirecting to kitsch-bent.com"?

So far my attempts to bring this occurrence to light have been met with pushback. I'm trying to keep this as neutral and informative as possible.

Last edited by NonElectronics (Feb 10, 2016 8:12 pm)

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NUMBSKULL

Boo-hoo? If you didn't want nonelectronics.org forwarding to someone else's domain, you should have purchased it yourself.

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Paris

"All three are presently forwarding to kitsch-bent . com."

O_o. WTF ??!? So not cool.

http://8bitaesthetics.bigcartel.com/
http://www.ninstrument.com/
https://handheldlegend.com/
http://www.gameboymods.co.uk/
http://www.greightbit.com/
http://www.retroconsole.fr/
http://bennvenn.myshopify.com/

Last edited by Biere Gratuite (Feb 10, 2016 8:14 pm)

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Madison, WI
catskull wrote:

Boo-hoo? If you didn't want nonelectronics.org forwarding to someone else's domain, you should have purchased it yourself.

You're absolutely right. This thread is here to help other store owners do just that. I think I speak for many vendors here in the community when I say we have felt relatively safe about this kind of event occurring up until now. As someone who has been affected by this I feel it's my responsibility to help bring awareness to the rest of the vendors out there that haven't been hit yet.

Last edited by NonElectronics (Feb 10, 2016 8:15 pm)

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Madison, WI

I have had several people contact me to propose that perhaps these domains were purchased and forwarded by a fan of the kitsch-bent brand rather than by the owner himself.

Initially, my response was "that's doubtful, but possible."

Now, upon further introspection, my stance on this is that it doesn't really matter who did it. The responsive action should still be the same. Get informed and take action to protect your business ventures. I'm offering my assistance in that endeavor, and that's ALL I'm seeking to do at the moment. Once that's resolved we can move on to whom and why.

Last edited by NonElectronics (Feb 11, 2016 3:31 am)

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Paris

NonFinite, you're too carefull with the words you're using.
If we're slowly using porn industry manners, I'll cam myself writing song naked for $$.

Last edited by Biere Gratuite (Feb 10, 2016 8:25 pm)

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NUMBSKULL

Isn't it illegal to domain camp like this?

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Madison, WI
Biere Gratuite wrote:

NonFinite, you're too carefull with the words you're using.
If we're slowly using porn industry manners, I'll cam myself writing song naked for $$.

I'm choosing my words carefully because I am interested in keeping this focused on the point at hand rather than starting a flame war. I appreciate your comment, however, and will let you know if I ever need a private nude dancer/composer.

Last edited by NonElectronics (Feb 10, 2016 9:06 pm)

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Madison, WI
catskull wrote:

Isn't it illegal to domain camp like this?

I'm not sure. All of the domains that have been purchased that I have seen have the domain registrar details obscured, however, so even if it IS illegal there would be no way of implicating anyone as far as the courts are concerned.

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Utah

You're a class act, Nonfinite. This is not a sarcastic comment.

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Madison, WI
The Laohu wrote:

You're a class act, Nonfinite. This is not a sarcastic comment.

Thanks Lars, I really appreciate that. smile

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The topic makes it sound like an informative SEO friendly list of modders, not a business dispute. Id suggest something like KITSCH BENT IS CAMPING ON COMPETITORS ALTERNATE DOMAIN NAMES, and call it it what it is, a call for pitchforks.