Typo of Generic Domain (Which is tm'ed)

[netfleet]

Say a company has registered Computers.com. They also register www.computers.com as their company name and list the term "www.computers.com" as a trademark.

Does that mean thart computres.com for example is off limits? Id computers.com is a well known entity would they successfully be able to argue that we are typosuqtting and trading off their name? Or could we say that we are just trading off typos of the generic word (and there's nothing wrong in that, right?)?

All ideas welcome - related purchase pending!

Cheers

Netfleet

 

[SimpleDomaining]

i wonder how did they do that. i tryed to register .com as a company name, but state name register did not let me.

 

[James]

i think you'd be safe with the domain computres.com its not there name, as long as you wern't selling the same stuff and had it parked you, you should be 100% safe
(i could be wrong, i doubt it tho, they don't have the trademark "computres" they have "computers")

 

[DnPresident]

Say a company has registered Computers.com. They also register www.computers.com as their company name and list the term "www.computers.com" as a trademark.

Netfleet

I'll buy any generic, They'll have to take a generic .com from me in court. If someone trademarks (Realty) too bad for them.

But that's just me.

 

[IAmAllanShore]

If someone trademarks (Realty) too bad for them.

Meh.

Realty? Reality? Really?

-Allan

 

[DnPresident]

typo

Now, buying a typo of someones tm is not right and should be discouraged.

Why would you do that and then ask what people think about it?

Maybeeee because it was wrong.

 

[Erdy]

The reason why generic names can not easily be challanged by TM holders is that you would say, "I wasn't thinking of your TM when I registered that name".

They need to prove bad faith. If you have some content related to the TM and the content is not consistent with the names dictionary meaning then you could lose it.

Example 1:

your domain = aple.com
TM = apple
if you content is about computers > you lose the domain
if your content is unrelated to computers/ipods/iphone etc. > you keep the domain.

In this example if you put some content related to the TM then it is clear that you made the connection apple=computers in your mind. So you were thinking of the TM. This proves bad faith.

Example 2:
your domain = compoter.com
TM = computer
you content is about computers >you keep the domain

In this example, even though your content is related to the field the TM operates, you will keep the domain because this doesn't prove bad faith. This simply shows that you are thinking of the dictionary meaning.

I don't think you can trademark a domain name. Correct me if I'm wrong. Would like to see a real life example of this.

 

[Joan]

Be very careful though because when companies register these names as trademarks and domain names they also have a list of what will come under that trademark, logo, domain name and it isn't always just what you think it might be for say computers.com They could have listed in their food products as well. For instance gillette also makes ragu sauce. So if you did a type on gillette and put in gillet and sold food products you could be in trouble as well.

 

[netfleet]

Thanks for all your replies guys. Sounds like it's worth a shot.

They sure have registered the domain name as a TM (this is in Australia so things might be different over here)

MarcelProust, Example 2 is what's going to happen. My content and ads will be related to the TM owner's products but that's only because their products are related to the generic meaning of the word.

I'll make sure I put a disclaimer up too, just to further clarify the lack of relationship with the TM owner.

Will let you know what happens if you are interested. Thanks again

 

[DNQuest.com]

Risk vs reward...

Nothing is 100% in UDRPs and much would rely on the panelist assigned. You would be treading on thin ice. If you are challenged, get a lawyer to defend you because it is such a grey area. One thing I would add is to have "real" content on the site. Develop it into something worthwhile. You would be able to build up rights to the domain. If the site is ads only, you would not have done so. So it could be ruled you have no rights to the domain. Just protect yourself.

 

[DnPresident]

Risk vs reward...

Nothing is 100% in UDRPs and much would rely on the panelist assigned. You would be treading on thin ice. If you are challenged, get a lawyer to defend you because it is such a grey area. One thing I would add is to have "real" content on the site. Develop it into something worthwhile. You would be able to build up rights to the domain. If the site is ads only, you would not have done so. So it could be ruled you have no rights to the domain. Just protect yourself.

Good advice but remember your disclaimer and possible attorney. It just seems to me registering a typo of a trademarked name is blaintent but it being a generic evens it back out. I don't believe anyone trademarking a generic name such as insurance, chairs, trees, grapes, wines, phone should have any claim to the name on the internet unless the owner of the online name goes above and beyond making people believe that they are doing business with the trademark.
Maybe when registering a name in a particular extension it should be considered that persons trademark.

 

[Dave_Z]

I don't think you can trademark a domain name. Correct me if I'm wrong. Would like to see a real life example of this.

One that sticks out:

Word Mark MESS.COM
Goods and Services IC 042. US 100 101. G & S: Computer services, namely, designing, creating and implementing network web pages and web sites for others. FIRST USE: 19961210. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19991210
IC 041. US 100 101 107. G & S: Providing information in the field of entertainment services, namely, art and music via a global computer network. FIRST USE: 19961210. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19991210

Mark Drawing Code (5) WORDS, LETTERS, AND/OR NUMBERS IN STYLIZED FORM

 

[Erdy]

Thanks Dave. I have found the wipo case. There are some interesting lines in the decision:

This case exhibits one of the most egregious examples of reverse domain name hijacking that any of the Panelists has thus far ever seen.
...
To the Panel, this conduct constitutes a clear abuse of the Policy
...
the Panel finds that the Complainant committed reverse domain name hijacking

I think the extensions of domain names should not be connected in any way to TM's. I remember a case there the TM was something like new net inc and they tried to claim new.net.
The respondent was arguing that the TM should give the owner the rights to domains like newnet.com or newnet.net. Of course I just made up these names because I can't remember the actual case.

I think if com or net are part of a TM'ed name this doesn't establish a connection with the domain name.

 

[DNQuest.com]

I don't think you can trademark a domain name. Correct me if I'm wrong. Would like to see a real life example of this.

The registered example is given already, the common law TM of a domain name....

DNQuest.com

Someone on another forum had the gall to try to sell me a similar domain to mine.. needless to say, I came out guns a blaring and I think I may have made him cry and possibly mess his pants.

 

[AdoptableDomains]

First, I wouldn't consider or even try to market computres.com as typo of computers.com, but rather a trademarkable name for computers. Mainly, because the name computers.com is not trademarkable for use in selling computers, since it's a generic word. They may be able to TM a stylized logo of the word, but not the word itself. If you read the text of many TM's they say just that.

There are hundreds of examples of real companies like this who purposely misspell creatively spell a generic word. I often seee Kars or cars, shoppes for shops, etc. If you think about it Cingular is a creative misspell of Singular; Qwest for Quest, Paychex for Paychecks, Publix for Public's, Ryder for rider, etc.

 

[brainstormTV]

Be very careful though because when companies register these names as trademarks and domain names they also have a list of what will come under that trademark, logo, domain name and it isn't always just what you think it might be for say computers.com They could have listed in their food products as well. For instance gillette also makes ragu sauce. So if you did a type on gillette and put in gillet and sold food products you could be in trouble as well.

So if it's Wal-Mart that has www.computers.com registered, your scrwed huh?

I agree with the earlier post about generics, let them try to enforce it through the courts. IMHO generic words are just that, they were created by someone long dead and gone and common usage has created the common value in those terms. No company has the (moral) right to lay exclusive claim to right to use those terms. The lawyers will take as much as they can get, accordingly, they will say computrs and cmpters and everything else they can as their exclusive "property". Most of this will not hold up in court and that's where it should be decided, no a corporate boardroom or a public BBS.

~KC

 

[bludex]

I think there are also issues arising
- when a generic expression Tm becomes famous, like "Smart" for the car maybe
- when a generic English word is acknowledged by the patent office as being distinctive for a good or service in a non-English speaking country (but that could be challengable if the use of English in this country businesswise is increasing) - and you are doing business in that country
- when TM laws in different countries are distinct from each other
- when the TM landscape changes, for instance new trademarks come up and therefore new similarities