Was it unethical for domain registrars to offer sales when Go Daddy was catching flak for supporting SOPA?
No, but that wasn't a "black swan" event that GoDaddy could not control. They chose to support SOPA. In my mind, that's a pretty different scenario.
All I'm saying is capitalism works best when customers are sensitive to problems. The more alternatives they try, the more likely they try the best alternative, the more likely the best companies succeed.
I basically agree with that; I just think the OP's post is pointing out a very specific edge case where a certain sort of behaviour is indicated.
In my mind it's a harmless crime. If you are doing something unethical then you risk turning off customers with your scummy behavior. If you have the superior product, then you are doing the customers a favor. If you have an inferior product, then the customer will simply switch products again.
I don't think a 'gentlemen's agreement' is needed.
All I'm saying is capitalism works best when customers are sensitive to problems. The more alternatives they try, the more likely they try the best alternative, the more likely the best companies succeed.