Italian website capitalizes on Vegas birthday

Sito Negron

Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2003 | 9:28 a.m.

Everyone wants to make money off Las Vegas, it seems, including an Italian web maestro who allegedly told the director of the city's Centennial Commission he started an Internet site, lasvegascentennial.com, to make sure the celebration is properly observed.

The company calls itself NetPhilosophy.com, and its website leads to lasvegas2005.com, which appears to be trying to sell advertising space to hotels and other enterprises.

"I asked him if he's willing to give me the domain names," said Centennial Project Manager Stacy Allsbrook of her conversation with a representative of NetPhilosophy.

He declined.

"He (said he) wants to make sure the centennial is celebrated properly, is publicized well; he believes that's his duty," Allsbrook said. "Whether that's the truth or not, it's a little disheartening that there are companies out there that would do that to public entities such as ourselves.

"He did ask me to suggest a price."

In an e-mail exchange with the Las Vegas Sun, a man who signed his name Rino Bandieras and used the NetPhilosophy address said that the group reserved a few dozen names for commercial purposes. He said NetPhilosophy will begin a banner ad campaign meant to advertise Las Vegas-located businesses, and said the intent is not to harm any interests.

"For instance, we did not accept ... online casinos," he pointed out.

The Las Vegas Centennial is set for 2005, and commemorates 100 years since the land auction in May 1905 that set the valley on a growth path. It is to include events for locals, such as curriculum that can be taught in schools, and major parties designed to attract a worldwide audience centered around the month of May.

Allsbrook said the website won't do anything to derail progress of the celebration planning, "but it's annoying."

"I wanted to make it the best, and easily accessible, and people will be directed to this other website that isn't with the philosophy of what we're trying to do," Allsbrook said.

Such Internet squatting was more common before 1999 legislation that made it easier for people and companies to recover their rightful names. Some critics have said that it made it easier for large corporations to ensure name supremacy on the Internet.

Allsbrook said the issue came up about a year and a half ago, when the commission looked into registering a domain name.

"To my surprise these domain names were taken by a company not even in the U.S.," she said.

The city has registered several names, said mayoral spokeswoman Elaine Sanchez. They are: las-vegas-centennial.com, vegas100.net, lv2005.org, lasvegassintennial.com, and lasvegassintennial.org