The search engine DuckDuckGo managed to take control of Duck.com from Google.
Google acquired ownership of the Duck.com domain when it was looking to buy video codec startup On2 in 2009, although the deal never went through. For the record, On2 was formerly known as Duck Corporation. That's how it bought the Duck.com domain.
DuckDuckGo, for those who don't know, was founded in 2008 and is a Google competitor that aims to keep users safe by not tracking their movements on the web. The company also promises to show the same results to all users, unlike Google.
Initially, the problem with Duck.com was that it redirected to Google.com, which could have caused confusion. But in July, Google's Rob Shilkin responded to a Bloomberg reporter's criticism of the situation, stating that the domain was now pointing to on2.com.
So, what's the explanation for Google owning https://t.co/UUh42lCV7I, other than to punch a much smaller web search engine? https://t.co/hkYWhj6UWA
— Shira Ovide (@ShiraOvide) July 20, 2018
However, that didn't stop DuckDuckGo founder Gabriel Weinberg, who in a now-deleted tweet, sent his thanks for the new redirect in July, along with a request to buy the domain from Google.
Five months later, DuckDuckGo appears to have acquired Duck.com, which now redirects to the DuckDuckGo.com domain. The WHOIS registration details are not disclosed, but it appears that ownership was officially transferred on December 7, 2018.
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