A Short Discourse on the Business of Website Hosting
In the
Business of Website Hosting Less Is Also More, Pt. 2
In the previous posting, I discussed some of what I see are the design flaws in many websites. Most of the previous discussion focused on how my web designs are based, not on any technical tricks, but on classical principles of design. Another way in which my approach to helping a website owner get their web ideas up and running is much different than how others approach the trade is I do not in any way attempt to monetize for myself the business between the website owner and the Web Hosting Company.
One common way web developers extract extra fees from their customers is by charging monthly maintenance fees, or something similar. The website owner might have their hosting contract intertwined with existing contracts under the control of the unscrupulous, in my opinion, web developer. I have been involved in instances where a website owner really had to jump through hoops to get their website back under their own control, or whomever the website owner now wanted to be in control.
My business methodology is quite simple when it comes to web hosting. The website owner contracts directly with the hosting company under their own account and their own contract. I certainly will and always do help the website owner navigate what can be a minefield of mind numbing acronyms and tricky charging traps for services not really needed. The telephone is always on speaker, or the website clearly visible. I do not engage in any practice that will benefit me in any way, except for my usual and customary fee for service.
The most critical component of establishing any new website is insuring the ICANN record is correct. Quoting Wikipedia, here is why the ICANN record is so very critical to establishing and maintaining ownership of a website. Ownership of a website really is about ownership of a domain name, which is associated with an IP address that originates with the hosting company.
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers is an American multistakeholder group and nonprofit organization responsible for coordinating the maintenance and procedures of several databases related to the namespaces and numerical spaces of the Internet, ensuring the network's stable and secure operation. ICANN performs the actual technical maintenance work of the Central Internet Address pools and DNS root zone registries pursuant to the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) function contract.
A website owner only truly owns a website if ICANN says so. Think of it as the lienholder name in a car registration. It is the name of the lien holder that legally owns the automobile. The registered owner is simply in physical possession of the vehicle. A website owner must be both the registered owner with the hosting company, and also the named owner of the domain name in the ICANN record. The registration with ICANN is usually done though the hosting company.
Yes, I have encountered situations where the two were, in fact, different. The blame for that often did rest with an unscrupulous former web developer. The situation mentioned in the previous post is a perfect example of what can happen if the registration of the website and domain name are not done correctly, according to the website owner's wishes, both with the hosting company and ICANN, at the time of the initial registration of the domain name and website.
Now, there was really nothing nefarious afoot, here. Just a demonstration of how a lack of knowledge or concern about the intricacies of website and domain name registration and the pitfalls therein was the first step down the Rabbit Hole. After having some discussion about the website with the owner, I realized the owner had no idea how the website was registered. A WhoIs Domain Lookup showed the assumed website owner was, in fact, not the owner. The ICANN record of the website showed that the domain name of the website was, in fact, owned by a third party. The third party and the actual website owner had no idea the future Rabbit Hole they were caused to be sent down, I assume, by the original web developer when the actual owner wanted to take actual possession of the domain name, and thus the website itself. It took several conference calls between the registered owner, the actual owner, and the hosting company to get this all straightened out.
This little vignette had a happy ending because no one in the chain was protesting the change in ownership. The original developer was already out of the picture. In this particular case, after all was said and done, the hosting company discovered the owner and now their direct customer was entitled to a $600 refund on the totality of fees billed for that particular website hosting.
I have, however, more than once encountered similar situations where the original web developer would not budge. In that case, the hapless website owner was locked into whatever contractual obligations they signed up for at the time the contract was entered into. The alternative here is to create a new domain and website.
When I create a website and domain name for a client; manage a website; or I am in anyway involved with another person or entity's website or domain, I ensure, or do all that is possible to ensure, that the hosting agreement itself is strictly between the hosting company and our now mutual customer. I will also do the same to ensure the domain name is properly registered with ICANN in the name of the website owner. My biggest concern here is that the website legally and practically belongs to the client — and that the client is happy with the work I did for the price we agreed to before the work began.
Anything less is taking advantage of the client's not knowing and understanding the website and domain name registration process. Helping regular folks make sense of these seeming impenetrable practices in the IT industry is what I have been doing for well over 20 years now. God willing, and a good tail wind, I can continue doing this for a few more years. Considering my advanced age.
If you have an interest in my web development services, please reach out to me at gerry@eppresents.com. Only messages that are strictly text will be read. Any message with an attachment or hyperlinks will not be accepted. Do include a US based telephone number if you have a serious interest.
Otherwise...
I rest my case.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Gerald Reiff