Cybersquatting, Domain Name Disputes and Trademarks: The Basics Explained

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When it comes to domain names, don’t think that you only need to worry about the ones that you registered. This is because with the phenomenon of cybersquatting, domain names that are similar to your company’s trademark could be registered to unscrupulous webmasters, intending to use them in bad faith. What happens is once the cybersquatter has gotten sales or Adsense clicks from their domain name, they will try to sell it to the original entity holding the trademark. When things get to this point, the price is significantly higher, sometimes even thousands of dollars. This is despite the fact that the individual or organization buying the domain name originally had the rights to it in the first place.

So, how does a company protect themselves from cybersquatting? Well, first they need to be aware of whether or not domain names related to their trademark are being registered and used in bad faith. The best way to do this is to sign up for Google Alerts. This is a service that allows individuals or organizations to track any websites, comments, articles, etc. that are being made about their website or brand.

If they receive an alert that shows a domain name that is similar to their trademark, they could be dealing with a potential cybersquatter. The keyword of course is ‘potential.’ The person may not have any intention on selling the domain name back, though they are still using it in an illegal manner.

Technorati Tags: domain name disputes, cybersquatting, trademarks

Comments

[Nick C.]

Good textbook explaination, but is not really applicable in the real world. This rings true with the recent opinion in the 5th Circuit--Healix Infusion Therapy v. Steve Murphy. The Court went out of its way to screw up in order to find in favor of the defendant in the case and is downright scary to read if you're a company trying to protect its domain names. What's wrong with these judges in Texas that they could make such a blunder????