Hi All,

I need some suggestions on what to do with this unprecedented situation.

I transferred a domain metaphorm.com from Network Solutions to Stargate on 05/07/01. Everything seemed to go fine. I got the success confirmation from Stargate on the transfer and all. The domain was paid for until August 2002. |I have the credit card statements to prove this. I was happily using the domain and the site until Oct 24, 2001 when suddenly I discover that AITdomains.com had somehow kidnapped my domain. They had somehow re-registered it in their own name. I shot several emails to both Stargate and AITdomains but no avail.

A little history: I was an AIT customer of several years until their service got so awful that I had to move. I did not owe them a penny when I moved my webhost. I never ever dealt with them on the issue of domain registerations.

All I get from Stargateinc.com is there was a problem transferring the domain (and all automated at that!). Now if that was the case, how was it that I was able to use my domain fine all those months between May and October, and see the updated information in the whois databases? Also, how is it that AIT (who are now demanding I pay them $260+ to release that domain) was able to register an already registered domain?

Can someone help with some suggestions, especially legal ones, so I could get that domain back?

I know AIT are thieves but how can an ICANN accredited organization like Stargate Inc., that gave me great service until October do this?

Does anyone have any similar experiences?

All help will be immensly appreciated.

Regards,

-AniG

Hi, sorry have to ask this. Did you by any chance do a chargeback on the $ 25.- that AIT charged you for the transfer?

The following is taken from their TOS:

In the event of a charge back by a credit card company (or similar action by another payment provider allowed by us) in connection with the payments of the registration fee for your domain name registration, you agree and acknowledge that the domain name registration shall be transferred to aitdomains.com as the paying entity for that registration to the registry. We will reinstate your domain name registration solely at our discretion, and subject to our receipt of the initial registration or renewal fee and our then-current reinstatement fee, currently set at US$200.

I can think of no other way/reason they could have done this. I actually have the same case running with one of my (now probably ex) clients. He decided to transfer his domainname from netsol to us, and then did a chargeback on his card.

He is now basically in the same position you are. His domainname is "hostage" until he pays the fees.

Nope I never charged back anything.

Let me make things clearer:

1. I never used their domain registration service ever, especially for this domain - metaphorm.com. I was just a client of their web hosting service (for 4 agonising years, I might add). I did not have any outstanding amounts due when I left either. In fact I left before my invoice was even due to be sent.

2. I never used a credit card with AIT. I used to send them payments in checks or drafts. After reading the horror stories on this forum and others, I think that was very wise.

I wonder if this is a stargate problem??? Didn't softwarereview say he has a few domains in his account that aren't his? Maybe the transfer landed the domains in AIT's account?

what's softwarereview? Who this "he" you refer to Chicken?

Again, I point out, I never dealt with AIT on domain renewal or registration, just web hosting. And the domain in concern - metaphorm.com - was still an active domain with Network Solutions. I transferred it to Stargate Inc in May, before I moved my servers from AIT to a much better one.

Now, since I am not in the US I cant possibly spend hours on the phone getting this resolved. This will haveta to be resolved either on the net or by legal action. I am open to both suggestions.

one of our members (softwarereview) has an account with stargate and mentioned in another post that he had some problems with stargate and that (I think), he had a few domains in his stargate account that weren't his. I was just thinking that this might *possibly* be a stargate problem. I am in no way sure, just throwing it out there.

I use to love stargateinc.... but the last 6 domains I've registered or transferred took 2 weeks to resolve numerious problems.

The last 3 new domains I registered with them their crappy NT servers gave asp during the payment process. Then I go back to see the domain is regsitered in stargates name. They transferred it to me but took 2 weeks to do it.