BAA bleating over baa.com

THE British Airports Authority has served writs on those alleged to be behind website www.baa.com, after failing to agree a price to acquire the domain name.

BAA.com, which bills itself as "a site for sheep and woolly resources" and carries pictures of cuddly animals, is under the control of Tom Bourke, a British computer consultant based in New Jersey.

Prolonged negotiations between the two fell apart earlier this year when Bourke and his advisers upped the asking price from 8000 to 2 million.

Bourke claims that BAA dragged its feet over the deal, constantly introducing new conditions, so he decided to call the whole thing off.

"Then, when it started talks again, we increased the price in line with the market and in the hope that BAA would just give up."

A spokesman for BAA, whose site can be found at www.baa.co.uk , said: "We were prepared to agree a price, but this was upped to a level that was out of all reason. We are not prepared to be blackmailed and have, therefore, served writs on the appropriate defendants for passing off."

Bourke, who is also a director of a company called Davork, claims that the site was launched around five years ago for vanity and humorous reasons. "I have not set up sites in other public company names and baa.com is just one of many sheep-lovers' sites on the web that can never be confused with BAA.

It is ludicrous to suggest that we are blackmailing the company."

Bourke is also involved in www.baa.net. It too carries the description "sheep and woolly resources" as well as pictures of sheep - some genuine; some inflatable.

This is not the first case of its kind and, as the commercial potential of the web grows, it is unlikely to be the last.

It raises questions about baa.org, home of the Boston Athletic Association, for example. Then again there is baa.org.uk, where surfers will find the British Agrochemicals Association.

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