Scoundrel faces court after trying to flog free email addresses

A URL and email provider is threatening to sue a chancer who tried to sell a bunch of its free email addresses.

Nameplanet.com gives out free personal email addresses made up of first and last names - such as john@smith.com. The idea being that popular family names or domain names can be shared.

The London-based company, which has QXL founder Tim Jackson on its board of directors, is angry because the individual in question realised they could make a fast buck through the service. The person, who cannot be named for legal reasons, registered email addresses for several famous Dutch people (yes, there are some), including World Online founder Nina Brink and Minister of Finance Gerrit Zalm. They then tried to flog them via a Dutch auction site.

This really rubbed Nameplanet up the wrong way. The company saw it as a threat to its business and an abuse of its philosophy.

Not only has it banned the emailsquatter from ever using its service again, but it has also sent out a statement threatening court action if the person is caught trying to sell any more.

"This is not only in breach of property rights and user agreements, but more fundamentally, it is violating the very values that our company is built upon," said Lars-Odin Mellemseter, Nameplanet CEO.

"We have no option but to react strongly against any abuse of our domains."

To check if your name is available as an email address, click here. ®

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