Website Ownership Entitlement

[LaughingGravy]

We have recently purchased a small business, complete with website. It is coming up for it's annual renewal shortly, and we're really not happy with the company that are hosting it at the moment. If we go elsewhere do we have to start from scratch and redesign it or do we take it with us, so to speak, and just find somebody else to run it ? We are new to this side of businesses ! TIA

[Buenchico]

You're free to choose whichever hosting site you like.

http://www.webhostingsecretrevealed.net/blog/web-hosting-guides/switching-web-host/

[Ellipsis]

Can you speak to the people you bought the business from and ask their opinion?

Can you dig out the contract you have with the hosting company?

Is the hosting also company the original developer?

Do you know what technology is used to host the website? (e.g. common software for a small business website is "Wordpress" running on a "LAMP Stack" (where LAMP = Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP))

[Gromit]

It depends on who owns the domain.

If the old website company registered the domain in their name, then they have got you over a barrel. Look on this website, and put your domain name in, and click on I own this website. It will tell you the registrant and ownership.

http://whois.com

If the previous owners own the domain, it will be easy to transfer it to a new host, or let a new webdesigner work on it.

[LaughingGravy]

I have looked this up and it says the Registrars are EMS ( who we are paying to host it now ) Does this mean we are stuck with them then do you think ?

[Hypognosis]

The hosting company couldn't care less about the content (site rule breaches notwithstanding). You pay rent, they provide you with storage space and, crucially, capacity for when the general public all rush to your site at the same time.

In practical terms, you may need to download copies of all the site pages to a local machine (ie within your offices) before the hosting company pulls the plug. See their severance terms to see their protocol for site relocation, if you take that road.

Intellectual property rights for the design must reside somewhere. Ideally, signed over to you in the contract of sale. If not, then swear profusely, prior to sleuthing the whereabouts of the designer.