The Federal Emergency Management Agency does a very smart thing and owns the domain name FEMA.com which directed to FEMA.gov but has dropped the ball and allowed the domain name to expire!
The domain names renewal “due date” was October 25, 2016 but it passed without payment and the domain name has since expired.
The good news, FEMA has about 35 more days to renew the domain name before they would lose ownership and the domain name be auctioned for a new owner. It’s likely not going to reach that point but it certainly could! Terms of service at domain registrar Network Solutions are pretty clear and state that if the domain reaches expired status, it is not guaranteed a grace period and can be eliminated at any time.
The reason why it’s important for FEMA to own the .com domain name is because it is the most commonly used TLD (top level domain), so it is common nature for users to type .com instead of .gov. By owning and redirecting the .com to the .gov, it removes confusion and directs people to the proper location. Consider it brand protection!
As with all domain names at Network Solutions after they surpass expiration date, whois information goes to privacy and domain name servers switch to PendingRenewalDeletion.com
Fema.com is listed on domain name aftermarket service NameJet.com currently and shows an Estibot domain valuation of $272,000
Update: On October 31, 2016 the Fema.com domain name appears to have been renewed. Since it’s apparent renewal, two things changed with the domain name. The whois information that was public prior, is now under whois privacy? That is a bit interesting. The second thing, domain name servers were set back to what they were prior to expiration but the domain name does NOT redirect to Fema.gov as it had. It only resolves to a server not found page. The DNS order that was used prior, is currently different and the potential reason it’s not resolving correctly.
Interestingly, Fema.com is still listed on NameJet today (Nov 2, 2016) and has 65 pre-order bidders with the high bid of $3,000. So was Fema the one who renewed it is the question.
Please, no one tell to fema to renew the name. It will be very interesting see the ending price 🙂
It redirects to FEMA.ORG now
@voxsapiens,
Still doesn’t resolve for me.