Revealed: Harry and Meghan bought their Sussex.com website domain name from British-born tech businessman (and he was VERY happy with the price)
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle bought their Sussex.com website domain name from a British-born businessman who is believed to be very happy with the fee he received, it has been revealed.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex launched their controversial website as part of a royal rebrand on Monday after purchasing the domain name for an undisclosed fee from tech entrepreneur Neil Agate.
Mr Agate, who is from Sussex but lives in the US, created the name in 1995 and had held onto it for almost 30 years.
Harry and Meghan are understood to have used a broker who did not reveal the Sussexes’ identities when they purchased the domain name without arguing the price.
The domain was registered on February 4 – nine days before Harry and Meghan relaunched on Sussex.com.
Mr Agate, who lives in Maryland, shared a photo of the new website on Wednesday and wrote: ‘Congratulations to the Duke & Duchess of Sussex on the purchase of Sussex.com for your new website.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle (pictured in Whistler this week) bought their Sussex.com website domain name from a British-born businessman, it has been revealed
Neil Agate (pictured), who is from Sussex but lives in the US, created the name in 1995 and had held onto it for almost 30 years
Mr Agate congratulated the duke and duchess on purchasing his website domain name
Meghan’s coat of arms issued in 2018 is seen above the couple’s names on Sussex.com
‘The domain served me well for 30 years & especially glad it’s still owned by a British polo player.’
He also revealed that he had had inquires over the years and joked how many Sussex insurance companies had approached him.
He told The Sun on Sunday: ‘Most weren’t worth the effort. I got an email from a broker in December and replied with my asking price. They accepted it.
‘I think the price was fair. I didn’t know who was buying it. I’m very happy with the situation.’
Records show that the Sussex.com domain was originally owned by Sussex Systems Inc, a computer software company in Washington DC. That company first registered the domain in 1995.
The Sussexes’ rebrand, which comes after they stopped using their SussexRoyal.com website in 2020, features a large photograph of the couple on the home page and two profiles, one for Prince Harry, 39, and another for Meghan, 42.
Although the Sussexes stepped down as senior royals in January 2020, Harry is still a prince and is fifth in line to the throne. The couple kept their Duke and Duchess of Sussex titles but are no longer addressed as his or her royal highness (HRH).
Harry and Meghan have come under fire in recent days over their new Sussex.com website, in particular the Duchess’ coat of arms – which critics claim is a breach of their promise to the late Queen Elizabeth when they acrimoniously quit front-line royal duties.
And their decision to change their children Archie and Lilibet’s surnames to Sussex has also raised eyebrows among royal watchers.
The moves have sparked a fresh round of criticism of the Duke and Duchess and renewed calls for the duo to have their duke and duchess titles removed.
But this week, a representative for Harry and Meghan slapped down suggestions these were the last chances for them to win back popularity and success.
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex attend the closing ceremony of the Invictus Games in September 2023. The photograph now appears on the Home page of sussex.com
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s royal crest features prominently on the new Sussex.com website and could cause tensions as a result
Their ‘About’ page reads: ‘The Office of Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex is shaping the future through business and philanthropy’
The Sussex.com website contains flowery descriptions of the Duke and Duchess
Meghan and Harry attend the Invictus Games One Year To Go Event on February 14
The source said: ‘We’ve heard time and time again that certain opportunities are make or break for the couple.
‘They’re still here. They’re still working and pursuing what they believe in, despite constantly being challenged and criticised. This couple will not be broken,’ the representative added to The Mirror.
Meghan also said in a statement: ‘There is a reason I have worked with Ryan and the talented team at Article for a decade: their attention to detail, their creativity and care, and the thoughtful approach to design as well as to the user experience.
‘They’re not just designers; they are collaborators who elevate your ideas into visual identities. They’re a very special company. Plus they’re Canadian, so I’m a fan.’
Richard Eden, who edits the Daily Mail’s social dairy, said the website is an ‘audacious’ move which will only serve to undermine King Charles and his heir, Harry’s brother, the Prince of Wales.
‘The California-based couple have rebranded their website to make it more regal and even started taking advantage of their old ‘Sussex Royal’ title – something they told the late Queen they would not do,’ he said.
‘Instead of using their Archewell brand, Prince Harry and Meghan have relaunched their website as Sussex.com.
‘Provocatively, they have started using Sussexroyal.com to direct traffic to their fancy new website.’
Harry tried out one of the competitors’ sit-skis and appears to be enjoying himself while being pushed down the slope by his instructor
Meghan and Harry’s appearance at Whistler came amid controversy over the Sussexes’ relaunched website
A filming crew was spotted joining the Sussexes as they arrived for a day of sit-skiing
Previously, he explains, the website promoted Archewell, the name of their charitable foundation and of their TV and film production company.
Now, it is focused on ‘The Office of Prince Harry & Meghan, the Duke & Duchess of Sussex’.
‘Their titles are displayed below Meghan’s coat of arms. They even use the titles of their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, in the biographical section.
‘By coincidence, I’m sure, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have chosen this moment, when King Charles is being treated for an unnamed form of cancer, to do something they never would have dared do while Queen Elizabeth was still alive.
‘This audacious move has confirmed my long-held suspicions that Harry and Meghan are determined to portray themselves as a rival royal family, undermining the King and his heir, the Prince of Wales.
‘The fact they have chosen to act when the King is being treated for a serious illness and the Princess of Wales is recovering from a major operation illustrates their lack of shame.
‘In times gone by, an embittered, ambitious Prince would seize the opportunity of rumours of a monarch being in poor health and withdrawn from public duties to try and seize the Crown for himself,’ writes Eden.
‘Nowadays, it seems, they rebel in virtual form.’
The couple did not look phased this week while on a three-day trip to Vancouver and Whistler this week to promote next year’s Invictus Games.
Elsewhere, Meghan has signed a new podcast deal with Lemonada Media after she and Prince Harry parted ways with Spotify.
The move will see her host a new podcast series for the female-founded company and have her Spotify-exclusive show Archetypes distributed to all platforms.
The new deal comes a year after the Dutchess and her husband Harry ended their $20million deal with Spotify, three years after it was signed.
Spotify and the Sussexes’s audio production company Archewell Audio released a joint statement saying they had ‘mutually agreed to part ways and are proud of the series we made together’.
A top Spotify podcast executive then called Prince Harry and Meghan Markle ‘f***ing grifters’ after they produced only one 13-episode series of a podcast for the company, and then split.
The Sussexes were seen jetting back home to California last night following their three-day tour.
It comes after Buckingham Palace appeared to rule out a return to the royal fold for Prince Harry, with palace sources claiming there is ‘no way back’ for the duke despite flying to the UK to be at his father’s side following the King’s cancer diagnosis.
Palace aides have insisted that there is ‘zero per cent chance’ that the duke will step in to help out the slimmed down monarchy as King Charles undergoes cancer treatment and the Princess of Wales recovers from abdominal surgery.
Yesterday, it was reported that the Duke of Sussex – who quit as a senior royal in 2020 – would be willing to return to a temporary royal role in support of his father during his illness.
Insiders had revealed that Harry, who is the fifth in line to the throne, and Charles had several ‘warm exchanges’ during the duke’s transatlantic dash to Clarence House on February 6.
But palace sources have told The Sunday Telegraph that there is ‘no way back’ for Harry, who said in a US interview this week that he thought the King’s illness could help unify his family.
