Sexy Ads Don't Earn GoDaddy Forgiveness for Online Casino Sellout

GoDaddy immediately froze the domain names and put them on a plate to be delivered to King... er, ah, Governor Steve Beshear.

GoDaddy.com has justifiably earned a reputation as sponsors of some of the funniest and sexiest advertisements during the Super Bowl each year. But this year, many people will hear the GoDaddy name and remember how quickly the domain name registrar sold out online gambling sites during the Kentucky forfeiture case.

GoDaddy had even used a series of ads making fun of a Congressional investigation before, having the sexy GoDaddy girl fluster a bunch of uptight Senators. But when it came to a real court situation, GoDaddy couldn't move fast enough to offer up the domain names online casinos had registered with them.

While other registrars ignored Judge Thomas Wingate's preposterous order to surrender the domain names of 141 Internet casinos and prepared to fight a strenuous legal battle, GoDaddy immediately froze the domain names and put them on a plate to be delivered to King... er, ah, Governor Steve Beshear.

GoDaddy's defense was that they had to follow the law. But other Internet registrars weren't disobeying the law, merely exercising their legal options to question an obviously foolish and presumptuous demand. And this week, those companies were validated as the Kentucky Court of Appeals ruled Wingate had erred in his granting of the forfeiture order against the online gambling sites.

Now comes Super Bowl time, and GoDaddy certainly has some cool, hip, and sexy ad planned. But viewers will be left with a sour taste even as they watch the vixen writhe, remembering how uncool and non-rebellious this supposedly non-establishment company became when the chips were down.