Registered UK Ltd company, but my company.co.uk is registered

How can I get this domain?

[XMLMania]

I've recently made the jump and formed an Ltd company based in the UK. However, the co.uk version of our name is taken (along with .com however I do have the option to buy the name at an extortionate price); I was wondering if the .co.uk should be legally available for my use? The domain is currently NOT in use and the company who have it registered have a totally different company goal.

The name is actually quite specific to the industry, they're an energy Ltd company and we are a XML technology company -- XML is in the domain.

Could anyone give me advice on this issue as I am very new to this...

Thanks in advance!

[bignet]

i dont think you can do much as domain was registered long before your compnay registration

you should have considered that before incorporating
suggestion:
perhaps just add -ltd or -limited to your domain

[XMLMania]

Yeah, I thought as much. I think i'll just splash out on the *.com

[Shak]

who owns the .co.uk?

if its a company with many unused domain names, than a sensible bid of say a £1,000 may secure the domain.

nothing is extortionate in this world

shak

[pete_m]

As a registered UK private limited company you can register a .ltd.uk domain, although I believe the domain name needs to be identical to the company name registered at Companies House. (There's also a .plc.uk second level domain for PLCs).

I really wouldn't bother with the .ltd.uk though - no-one else can register it (because it needs to match the comany name), and the level of public awareness about it is very low.

I'd definitely do as bignet suggested (add -ltd, or maybe -company), *as well as* getting the .com (and maybe the .net). If it's a two-word company name get the hyphenated versions as well.

[engine]

As a point to note, if the company that as registered the domain is not actually using it, nor is it the same of even similar to their company name, there's a good chance you could prove you have a right to the .co.uk

Your first port of call should be Nominet, and the domain dispute FAQ [nominet.org.uk] page may give you some pointers.

If that doesn't help, you may wish to engage a solicitor with specialist skills in this area however, with legal fees running into the thousands, you may find it's cheaper to simply buy the domain name.

[XMLMania]

Thanks for the valued advice. My next step is to acquire the .com and .co.uk. It looks like the .ltd.uk would be a waste of time registering, as pete_m says it'd be hopeless to market atm, and none else can register it.

The company who has registered the .co.uk domain seem quite computer illiterate, no email is supplied in the WHOIS and their own web presence is a single webpage that says "Coming Soon!", so I’m hoping they'll go easy on the transfer price.