internet use is very important to a number of segments of the hospitality industry e 691639

Internet use is very important to a number of segments of the hospitality industry, especially for lodging and travel booking. Increasingly, more and more restaurants also employ the Internet for reservations. Some fast food places even offer “ordering” for pick up or delivery through the Internet. It’s no wonder that the proper Internet domain name can make or break a company and that buying a domain name makes a hot market. While the cost of registration is negligible, if a company has to purchase its name from a cyber squatter—people who register names in the hopes of selling them for a profit—the cost can rise quickly. When eBay, Inc., the world’s largest online auction house, recently tried to register www.ebay.ca in Canada, it discovered that the name had been registered previously by an entrepreneur. eBay then had two options to consider. Since eBay is a registered trademark around the world, (1) the company could take legal action; or (2) it could negotiate the domain name www.ebaycanada.ca, which also had been registered previously by a self described “Internet entrepreneur.” This entrepreneur said that he hoped to make some quick money when he registered www.ebaycanada.ca. He eventually gave up the name without a fight rather than go to court and face high legal bills.