Big firm’s website suspended thanks to 2013 RAA

Sports site suspended since someone didn’t click on a confirmation email.

It’s not exactly Amazon.com, but a website belonging to a sizable firm has been suspended thanks to a whois verification snafu.

Fixtures365.com, a sports betting site, has been suspended since the owner did not respond to a verification email.

As of January 1, domain name registrars operating under the 2013 Registrar Accreditation Agreement must suspend sites when they cannot verify the registrant’s contact details. Most registrars send a confirmation email to clients. Clients then have to click a link in the email or take some other type of action to confirm receipt.

While Fixtures365.com might not be a household name to many people, its ownership chain goes up to media firm British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB).

It was only a matter of time ahead of an operating site was going to be ensnared by this provision of the 2013 RAA.

Here’s what you see right now if you visit Fixtures365.com (update: they apparently “clicked the link,” as the site is now back up):

(thanks Michele)