Recycling blog names

An unused blog has a name I want. Can I have it?
Sorry, you can’t.

Can you delete an unused blog so I can have it?
That’s a sorry too ….

Will unused blogs be deleted so they can be recycled and used by others?
I’m afraid not.

Why?
Deleting an ‘unused’ blog gives no benefit to WordPress.com. While you might feel it will benefit you because then you can get a name you want, what if someone wants your current name? And someone else wants another name? It either turns into a blog collection or a rolling chain of name swapping. It could also turn into a mad rush and accusations of who deserved what if blogs were recycled.

The names of blogs currently used does not represent a hindrance to getting a new blog. If you were lucky enough to get an account here early then part of that action is the blog name of your choice.

But are names ever reused or reclaimed?

A handful of times we have reclaimed names that conflict with our trademarks or products, and a few times for Automattic employees. As it says in our Terms of Service we can delete or reclaim any account for any reason. We call these “eminent domains.” Historically we have never done this to an active blog.

Update: This is not a new policy, just a clarification of the two-year-old Terms of Service since people were asking about it in light of this FAQ.