Opt Out “.xxx” Domain Name..You Have Until October 28

As part of its list of new “Sponsored Top-Level Domain” names, or sTLD’s the suffix .xxx was created by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) back in March. This gave adult industry companies the option to get a domain name that ends in .xxx.

But what about companies that don’t want a .xxx web site created, using their trademark or name? ICANN is offering a “sunrise period” to companies, that allows them, for a limited time, to opt out of ever having a .xxx version of themselves online. The deadline to opt out is October 28, 2011. After that deadline, the name of any company that has not opted out will be fair game for a .xxx web site. Unfortunately for anyone wishing to opt out, there is a fee to do so. ICANN will charge between $300 and $350 to opt out of the .xxx domain names.

After the sunrise period ends, companies will have to rely on the more traditional methods of domain name dispute resolution, the main one being the UDRP, or Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy. This option requires litigation and will no doubt cost companies a lot more in the long run than the sunrise fees.

Twilight Domain Name Cybersquatting

It could be argued that twilight.com’s owner Tom Markson simply likes the movies, books, and whole Twilight franchise and has no intention of cybersquatting.  But Summit Entertainment, the very lucrative Twilight Franchise’s owner isn’t buying that argument.  Mr. Markson is in no way related to Summit Entertainment, and has owned the twilight.com web site since 1994, far before the rise of the Stephanie Meyer books, and their Hollywood versions.  Twilight.com is being sued by Summit Entertainment for copyright and trademark infringement.   But Markson’s argument seems a little flimsy considering there are Adsense ads on the page, and he’s probably made at least some amount of revenue from such a high profile page and it’s Adsense links.  Making matters worse, the site looks very unprofessional and could give fans the impression that Summit Entertainment is either shabby and clueless, or at least very strange about their marketing efforts.  Markson responded to a cease and desist letter from Summit in 2009 by denying their claims.

Cybersquatting of New Domain Names

Here’s some interesting news: The likelihood of cybersquatting remains high for .com's but is much less ICANN’s new domains. According to a recent study by a top-level domain (TLD) consulting firm called Minds+Machines, internet domains other than .com (such as .net, .biz and .info) aren’t currently pursued by cybersquatters. Furthermore, the study suggests that the new assortment of generic top-level domains (gTLD’s), recently created by ICANN will not attract cybersquatters either. These domains include .mobi, .cat, .name, .asia, .pro, .tel and .travel.

The study was conducted thusly: Minds+Machines examined domain name registration of more than 1,000 Fortune 100 brands. They reason that if a trademark name is available at a domain, neither the company nor cybersquatters are concerned with the open real estate. The danger of trademark infringement is assumed to be low, given the apparent lack of interest in the site. According to the study, 100 percent of the companies were registered in .com sites. The already-established gTLD’s outside of .com (.org, .net, .biz and .info) had between 65 and 87 percent name registration. The new categories mentioned above had less than 30 percent registration.

These numbers do show that cybersquatting is an issue in the .com category. However, they fail to prove anything about the future of internet domain value. Will these new domains continue to be ignored in the long term? It’s hard to say. Current internet patterns may not be indicative of the future. Fifteen years ago, could anyone have predicted the current power of social media?

Obtaining Your Domain Name Back From Cybersquatters Through UDRP

A common scenario for established or new companies occurs when its primary domain name has been seized by a cybersquattor. For example, imagine your company name and trademark is “Sizaroma.” You were able to register www.sizaroma.com but later www.sizaroma.net, www.sizaromas.com, and www.sizaaromas.com were registered by someone else, probably a guy in China who in bad faith, has no intention of ever using domains. Or worse, he later puts up a competing website in bad faith with similar goods and services feeding off the goodwill that you have worked so hard to create. That my friends is a cybersquatter. So what are your options? One of the best is a Uniform Domain Name Resolution Policy proceeding (“UDRP”). A UDRP is like a streamlined litigation done with an arbitration panel, usually with the National Arbitration Forum or WIPO. A complaint is filed, and the cybersquatter is allowed a chance to respond. You do not have to serve the defendant like in a typical lawsuit. Nor is there a trial or any discovery. Further, there is no jurisdictional issues, so if the defendant is in China, a claim can still be made against him.

The net result is a transfer of the domain name. No money damages or injunction from using the trademark can be issued in UDRP, rather it's strictly about getting your domain name back. So the beauty of UDRP is that it is straight to the point, and can be completed within a few months rather than a long dragged out litigation that could last for a year or longer.

There are however other means for domain name disputes, such as filing a federal lawsuit under the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act ("ACPA"), or perhaps a traditional trademark infringement lawsuit. An IP attorney would have to evaluate each scenario to determine the most appropriate method.