Here’s how the scheme worked:

Network Solutions would track what domains people were searching for. With this actionable intelligence in hand, it would quickly purchase those domains and park them. When an interested party went back online to purchase the domain, they would discover that Network Solutions had already registered it. Of course, Network Solutions was willing to sell it to them for a fee. This fee was more expensive than other competing registrars typically offer. Alternatively, if the interested party did not come back online to purchase the domain within five days, Network Solutions would simply take advantage of I-CANN’s refund policy and void its own registration. No cash out of their pockets!

Network Solutions did not break any laws and did not violate any I-CANN policy by front running domains. However, it certainly feels like there is something unfair and harmful to markets going on here.

Source:
http://www.seomoz.org/blog/network-solutions-exploits-icanns-fiveday-refund-rule-to-hoard-domains

By the way, they are in Techcrunch as I comment on this. Here:

http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/01/10/network-solutions-using-questionable-tactic-to-sell-more-domain-names/

Sad thing is it is legal.

Thats just funny.