DC Thomson recovers Beano web domain from “internet squatter”

By John Freeman on October 2, 2015

DC Thomson, publishers of The Beano, have taken control of the thebeano.co.uk domain name from a Norfolk businessman.

The Dundee-based company, which has been publishing The Beano for decades, took action against Stephen Fisher from Ellingham, who had registered the domain name.

Internet watchdog Nominet said it was an “abusive registration” and ruled he hand it over to the publishers.

BBC News reports Nominet expert Peter Davies said the DC Thomson had rights in the Beano name and it had, “to his reasonable satisfaction”, shown the domain name was an “abusive registration”.

• Check out the official Beano web site at at www.beano.com

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John Freeman

John is the founder of downthetubes, launched in 1998. He is a comics and magazine editor, writer, and Press Officer for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He also runs Crucible Comic Press.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine and Overkill for Marvel UK, Babylon 5 Magazine, Star Trek Magazine, and its successor, Star Trek Explorer, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics; and has edited several comic collections and graphic novels, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”, and Hancock: The Lad Himself, by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page.

He’s the writer of comics such as Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs”, with Dave Hailwood.