slamming claim filed against verisign

Is Verisign engaging in a practice that had a number of long distance telephone service providers on the wrong end of legal battles a couple of years back? A lawsuit brought against Verisign claims that the company has been sending out notices to people allowing them to renew their domain name registration for their web sites:

BulkRegister yesterday filed suit in a Maryland court, saying VeriSign's mailshots are false advertising, and that its practices amount to tortuous interference with contractual relations and tortuous interference with economic opportunity. The company wants an injunction and is currently investigating monetary damages.

"It's deceptive... It looks like an invoice," said Tom D'Alleva, VP of marketing at BulkRegister. He argues that unknowing recipients of the mailshot are being duped into transferring their registrations to VeriSign, thinking they are renewing with their chosen registrar, often at a higher price.

The notice does explain that it is for transfer of the domain name to Verisign, but in fine print on the back of the notice. BulkRegister's hearing for a temporary injunction was to have been heard this morning.