Lipsy, a British retailer specializing in women's fashion and cosmetics, has notified ICANN of its intention to terminate its registration agreement, effectively ceasing management of its delegated brand domain. This domain, originally delegated in 2016, is experiencing an atypical relinquishment. Companies frequently forfeit brand domains that remain unused; however, over 130 names had been registered under .LIPSY. Initially managed by Verisign, the domain zone's technical operations were transitioned to Identity Digital in May 2023.
All registered domain names pertained to specific products or categories, redirecting users to the official website of Next, the entity owning the Lipsy network. One might speculate that this decision is linked to the acquisition and imminent rebranding by Next, negating the necessity for .LIPSY. However, this assumption is incorrect: Next acquired Lipsy in the fall of 2008, and the chain continues to thrive in the UK, enjoying significant popularity. Thus, abandoning the brand domain appears irrational.
Nonetheless, all domain names under .LIPSY were expunged on October 22. The next day, the company submitted a formal request to ICANN to terminate the contract. The rationale behind this unforeseen decision remains undisclosed. At present, it is noteworthy that the frequency of brand domain abandonments has significantly decreased. Historically, the tally of such "abandoned" domains has surpassed a hundred, yet the case of .LIPSY marks only the third instance of brand domain rejection this year, as reported by Domain Incite.
