If you currently have a domain name with Brinkster and want to transfer to another registrar, good luck.

First of all, you can’t email support. You have to enter live chat. Secondly, you can’t do it through your control panel. You only can do it through live chat. Thirdly, they ask for your password!

Sending my password in clear text through a third party company does not seem like a good idea. I’d rather send it in an email than through LivePerson’s chat server.

My problem was the email address listed on the Whois record was an address that I no longer had access to. I changed my email address in the Brinkster Control Panel, but they apparently won’t send it to that address, only the address listed in the Whois. Of course that was the address that I didn’t have access to.

Brinkster buys their domains through Wild West Domains and said:

Douglas: If the contact address is changed the domain will be locked for 60 days.

Vince (ME): i thought that only applied if the domain is transferred

Douglas: If the name server are changed, or if the contact information is updated.

Vince: not true according to icann

Vince: “Yes, you may change the registrar sponsoring your domain name (beginning 60 days after initial registration). “

Vince: http://www.icann.org/faq/#changereg

Vince: that is your policy

Douglas: That is ICANN and it does apply to us. But there is additional requirement place by the register.

Douglas: They state that if the contact information is updated, the domain is locked for 60 days.

Douglas: This is to prevent a domain from being “hi-jacked”.

Vince: where?

Douglas: Once it is transferred out there is nothing that can be done.

Vince: still waiting…

Vince: all I see is this page

Vince: http://www.icann.org/transfers/policy-12jul04.htm

Vince: section 3

Douglas: I am looking for the TOS of the domain register.

Vince: 8. A domain name is in the first 60 days of an initial registration period.

Vince: your TOS says nothing about the 60 days

Vince: http://www.brinkster.com/AboutUs/UTOS.aspx

Douglas: It says that you are bind by the terms of the register, we are not the register.

Douglas: Do you want to to make the changes.

Vince: I’ve read both of Wild West Domains TOS pages

Vince: http://www.wildwestdomains.com/gdshop/legal_agreements/show_doc.asp?plvid=1387&pageid=domain_nc

Vince: http://www.wildwestdomains.com/gdshop/legal_agreements/show_doc.asp?prog_id=wildwestdomains&pageid=TRANSFER_SA

Vince: neither say that

Douglas: Do you want me to make the change?

Vince: the only thing it says is this:

Vince: The domain name may not be transferred to another registrar within 60 days of the completion of the change of Registrant transaction (the “Transfer Prohibition Period”).

At that exact moment I received an email with the EPP code that I needed to transfer the domain from Brinkster to Namecheap!  Strange, since my email address wasn’t listed anywhere on the whois, and the domain is locked…right.  This should also work if you need to transfer your domain to Godaddy, Yahoo, or any other registrar (not register Douglas).

Sounds like someone didn’t know what they were talking about and was completely outwitted and out researched (thanks Google).

For the record, doesn’t every company have to play by ICANN’s rules?  Saying that their rules don’t apply to your company in particular is against their agreements right?

In the end, avoid Brinkster and you’ll be fine.

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