Recd legal notice - need advice...

[domaindevelopers]

Hi,

got a legal notice from lawyers on behalf of Coca-Cola, US for transferring the domain Coca-ColaIndia.in to them.

have a ques - what happens if I just drop the domain now? can I be still sued legally for it? the reason am asking this is I am planning to give them two options -

1. I drop the domain and then anybody including them can register the domain.

2. they pay me USD 20.00 to cover my reg fees and I transfer the domain to them.

hopefully, may recover my reg fees. what do u guys say???

 

[AdoptableDomains]

Hi,

got a legal notice from lawyers on behalf of Coca-Cola, US for transferring the domain Coca-ColaIndia.in to them.

BIG mistake...one of the most protected TM's there is.

have a ques - what happens if I just drop the domain now?

If they allow it you may be okay. You may need to talk to them.

can I be still sued legally for it?

Yes, you can. but it's probably not likely unless they think you made money on it.

1. I drop the domain and then anybody including them can register the domain.

They may accept that, or they may want it turned over to them so no one else picks it up in a drop.

2. they pay me USD 20.00 to cover my reg fees and I transfer the domain to them.
hopefully, may recover my reg fees. what do u guys say???

I wouldn't push the issue against them unless they offer it. Your best move is proabably to turn it over without question. If they don't like your attitude, they could file a WIPO case and have you branded permanently as a cybersquatter. You either lose by default or spend time/money defending yourself in a case where you have no defense. Consider the $20 a lesson learned the hard way.

 

[smartpc]

Hand it over free of charge, take the $20 loss...not worth the hassle....they might take offence you asking them for $20 and teach you an expensive lesson..just for something to do.....

 

[labrocca]

hopefully, may recover my reg fees. what do u guys say???

I think that's fair...and in return you can help pay their legal fees. Most lawyers get $200-$500 per hour for billing. So let's say he has to draw up a contract to do this deal and of course the time for research and emailing. I would guess he could bill a minimum of one hour maybe even two. So yes...you get your $20 back and they get a few hundred. Seems fair to me.

 

[domaindevelopers]

thanks for replies...

any help is appreciated.

 

[Toker]

You could go to WIPO but unless you're using it for something different
entirely it could be a hassle.
Since coca-colaindia.com is theirs..

Actually you might be able to put an information site up about
Accusations of water shortages and negative environmental impacts
caused by nine bottling operations / factories used in the manufacture
of Coca-Cola products in India

In April 2002, local residents from Plachimada village and human rights activists formed a ‘struggle committee’ to campaign against the Coca-Cola factory in the Plachimada in the Palakkad District of Kerala, India. Since their protest began, two charities, CorpWatch and ActionAid,
have led in detailing observations and allegations on the impacts of nine bottling operations/factories used in the manufacture of Coca-Cola
products in India.
A summary of all the allegations for each bottling operation/factory is provided in this briefing.
In November 2003, Middlesex University SU tabled a resolution for the
2004 NUS Conference that would end the NUS Services Coca-Cola contract. The issue was referred to NUS Services Convention.
Middlesex Students’ Union and the School of African and Oriental Studies Students’
Union submitted a motion to NUS Services Convention 2004 imposing conditions on Coca-Cola that would need to be met before any new
contract could be signed.
This motion was rejected in favour of a statement & motion from NUS Services’ Ethical & Environmental Committee.
Convention 2005 mandated the Committee to continue the process of constructive engagement, with guidelines concerning future contracts
to be presented at Convention 2006.
NUS Services’ Ethical & Environmental Committee is currently involved in constructive engagement with The Coca-Cola Company (Coca-Cola)
in relation to the issues outlined in this briefing.

Since your use of the domain is not capitalizing on the name but
a public information site you might get away with it but personally
I'd give it to them.
PS, ya shouldn't have tried to sell it to them...
:santa:

 

[Varon]

IMO, just give it back, forget the 20 bucks, relax, and have a chilled coca cola.

 

[domaindevelopers]

Thanks Toker for taking pain and time to send such a detailed reply.

I had not offered them the domain but had asked them if joint dev was possible - to run it as blog for Indian fans.


Anyway, decided to turn the domain to them.

Thanx all.