Domain names have become an important part of our commercial lives. They act as designators of products and services and serve as shortcuts to reduce consumer search costs. That is why trademark owners must be vigilant in protecting their trademark rights on the Internet. On June 24, ICANN gathered to discuss adding new generic top-level domain names, or gTLDs, to the spectrum of available domain name suffixes. When ICANN adds gTLDs, you can be sure that cybersquatters and typosquatters are watching because it presents them with a new opportunity to register the trademark of another to profit off of the goodwill and Internet traffic associated with the mark. Domain name disputes inevitably follow the addition of TLDs, so it is important to hire an attorney that is proactive in monitoring the use of your trademarks on the Internet.
Continue reading "Protecting Your Trademark In Light of ICANN's New Generic Top-Level Domain Names" »
CADNA has just issues a report on domain name Drop Catching titled "A study on the fate of expiring domains and how the Add Grace Period is leveraged to avert domain name investment risks."
The cyberspace real estate market is booming and domain names are now registered at a faster pace than ever before. One core reason for the expanding marketplace is that domain names can produce monthly cash flow much like rent does in the traditional real estate market. Domainers will tell you that even “bad” names can generate income of $100/year, which is more than 10 times the cost. The ability to monetize domain investments has created increased competition for available and expiring domain names. The reports conclusions are set forth below:
Continue reading "CADNA Report on Domain Drop Catching" »
John Levine has noticed
something incredibly important in the latest ICANN Board Meeting
minutes. ICANN may make their .20 cent fee for registration
non-refundable, subject to both Board approval and registrar approval
of this fee. Currently, tasting domain is free, making it
economically viable for tasters to register large chunks of expiring
domains, taste them for 5 days and decide which ones to keep. Domain
tasters do have to pay the initial registration fee so they need to
bankroll the initial payment. But they currently get a full refund for
all domains returned within the Add Grace Period (AGP). The number of
domains deleted after the AGP is estimated to be 95%.
Continue reading "ICANN Unanimously Votes to Change Policy To End Domain Tasting" »
ICANN recently issued a report on domain tasting which often results in squatting of trademarked domains. it does appear that ICANN is poised to do something about domain tasting. The only questions are when ICANN will act and whether it will impose a delete fee or simply end the grace period altogether. There was no significant support for leaving the current add/grace period in place. Here are some highlights.
Executive Summary
Background: The practice of domain tasting (using the add grace period to register domain names in order to test their profitability) has escalated significantly in the last two years. ICANN community stakeholders are increasingly concerned about the negative effects of domain tasting and in the spring of 2007 the At Large Advisory Committee (ALAC) asked that the domain tasting issue be studied further by the ICANN GNSO. The ALAC request enumerated five areas of potential concern for Internet users:
- Potential destabilization of the domain name system through excessive operational load on registry systems;
- Creation of consumer confusion as names quickly appear and disappear, or as users are redirected to advertising or otherwise confusing sites;
- Potential increased costs and burdens of legitimate registrants and service providers;
- Facilitation of trademark abuse, where existing dispute resolution mechanisms may not be sufficiently timely or cost-effective for trademark holders to use against short-term infringement; and
- Facilitation of criminal activity including phishing and pharming.
Continue reading "GNSO Initial Report on Domain Tasting" »
Traverse Legal's lawyers are internet and technology specilists focused on cybersquatting and domain dispute matters. Traverse Legal's attorneys have handled ACPA and UDRP matters involving thousands of domain names, representing both trademark registrants against cybersquatters and on behalf of domain registrants facing claims of trademark infringement and cybersquatting. The primary weapon asserted by trademark registrants agasint cybersquatters is the UDRP, which creates a framework for transferring cybersquatted domains to their rightful owners.
Continue reading "The Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP)" »
Uniform Domain-Name
Dispute-Resolution Policy
General Information
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) is responsible for managing and coordinating the Domain Name System (DNS) to ensure that every address is unique and that all users of the Internet can find all valid addresses. It does this by overseeing the distribution of unique IP addresses and domain names. It also ensures that each domain name maps to the correct IP address.
Here are some ICANN links which will help you better understand the UDRP process and legal standards:
Continue reading "ICANN: Resolving Domain Theft & Cybersquatting Disputes" »
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