French State triumphs in war over ‘France.com’ trademark

Thanks for sharing

France and Paris both do the same with domains they see as infringing of their TM's

This is awful news for domain owners. Part of me hopes that the deep web becomes more popular to prevent ruling governments from taking things by force.

This is bad news for any domain owner, not just geo domain owners

This is just another case of where if your a company with great influence and capital or in this case a goverment you can be above the law and bend it to your desire.

Money and connections rule the world it's a shame but it's true

Even if the owner never used the image of the French flag, Eiffel Tower and used the image with the word France.com the French goverment would use the fact that just the word France is confusing or would use another excuse to win.

This is just shameful it's very clear that the owner as every right to own the domain name.

Owner must sue them in US where he lives, not in EU

Argentum said:

Owner must sue them in US where he lives, not in EU

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The article states that:

The dispute dates back to August 2014, when Jean-Noël Frydman applied for the figurative EU trademark ‘France.com’, with the words appearing next to an image depicting the French flag and the Eiffel Tower.

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So he applied for an EU-wide TM, that was denied, so as I understand it the case is not related to the ongoing dispute.
But I am now wondering if the filing of the TM isn't something that triggered a reaction from the French State.

The French State legally hijacking such a valuable 6-7 figure domain sets frightening precedent for geo-domain holders IMO. In 2016, LA.com sold for $1.2 million, I imagine France.com had a similar value.Unbelievable that WIPO & the EU courts would allow such a seizure considering that the domain name was being used as some sort of news website. Hopefully, the TM experts can chime in on this precedential setting case; we are always seeking more knowledge of TM law impact on domain speculation. Admittedly, we can not escape the TM/ACPA/UDRP legal framework and must master the subject or lose a lot of money...

From DomainNameWire.com 4/26/2018: Original France.com owner sues to recover domain from the country https://domainnamewire.com/2018/04/26/france-dot-com/

Jahe said:

The French State legally hijacking such a valuable 6-7 figure domain sets frightening precedent for geo-domain holders IMO. In 2016, LA.com sold for $1.2 million, I imagine France.com had a similar value.Unbelievable that WIPO & the EU courts would allow such a seizure considering that the domain name was being used as some sort of news website. Hopefully, the TM experts can chime in on this precedential setting case; we are always seeking more knowledge of TM law impact on domain speculation. Admittedly, we can not escape the TM/ACPA/UDRP legal framework and must master the subject or lose a lot of money...

From DomainNameWire.com 4/26/2018: Original France.com owner sues to recover domain from the country https://domainnamewire.com/2018/04/26/france-dot-com/

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France is a highly protectionist country. Observe their economic policies to foreign influence, investment, capital outflow, etc.

ixex said:

France is a highly protectionist country. Observe their economic policies to foreign influence, investment, capital outflow, etc.

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@ixex What makes the case most interesting is that France.com owner. is a U.S. based company and they filed the lawsuit in U.S. Federal Court against the French state; which is still pending. So, this case is highly problematic on so many levels. Hopefully the registrant will update the industry on the status of his case sooner than later.

Jahe said:

@ixex What makes the case most interesting is that France.com owner. is a U.S. based company and they filed the lawsuit in U.S. Federal Court against the French state; which is still pending. So, this case is highly problematic on so many levels. Hopefully the registrant will update the industry on the status of his case sooner than later.

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Understood. Will be interesting to see the future outcome(s).

@ixex Check your DM. I have a relevant question for you...

"Should geo-domain speculators be worried about this decision?"
In agreement with @Kate on this one. The answer is 'No' because the result of this is simply a decision on a trademark dispute. France had the trademark 'France' first in the EU, there isn't any relation to this and the wider concerns of geo-domain owners unless they are in the exact same situation where there is a trademark that they want to register that predates someone elses.

In terms of the domain dispute, the important thing is that the owner was using the domain France.com for genuine purposes that long predate any trademark registration by the French state. The domain was stolen and I still have faith that it will be returned to it's rightful owner.

AchillesX said:

This is awful news for domain owners. Part of me hopes that the deep web becomes more popular to prevent ruling governments from taking things by force.

This is bad news for any domain owner, not just geo domain owners

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You'll also have to worry about some of the darkest personalities out there. People who create large bitcoin services that all of a sudden vanishes with everyone bitcoins. I got robbed twice in the dark web.

But as already stated in the thread, the article posted isn't a domain decision, it's a trademark dispute ruling. I hope that makes sense.