A cybersquatter typically registers domain names the same as, or confusingly similar to trademarked corporate names with the intent of profiting from the confusion the domain creates.
Domain name speculating or investing, often wrongly confused with cybersquatting, is a perfectly legal business similar to collecting classic cars, art, homes, properties, or any other commodity that can be bought and sold for a profit.
Cybersquatting - The Early Days:
In the early days of the internet, many corporations failed to recognize the future potential of the internet or their place in it, and failed to register the domain name associated with their company. Domain speculators, soon to be renamed cybersquatters did. Once it became clear the internet was going to be huge, companies came looking for their domain names only to find the that the cybersquatters were holding the domains ransom (in some instances). Unwilling to pay the cybersquatters millions of dollars to acquire the domains, corporate america turned to politicians to craft a new law that would turn cybersquatters into criminals and force them to give up the domains to the corporations who felt entitled to them. The new anti-cybersquatting laws so favored corporations that certain corporations were able to sieze valuable domains from legitimate owners.
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