Trademark Domains - Would you?

[mneylon]

If you knew a domain that included a trademark was available, would you register it?

I'm thinking along the lines of:

bigbrandtools.com

Or something along those lines - "bigbrand" could be replaced with the trademark name in question

 

[Forbairt]

probably would ... (ish)

Worst that can happen is ... they demand it from you ?
(or could they sue you for possessing the domain ?)

Best that could happen .. they offer you some money for it.

 

[louie]

I did it by mistake a while ago ( I still own the domains), but I did have some trouble with it...
It's a risk, but so is everything else...

 

[mneylon]

Worst that can happen is ... they demand it from you ?
(or could they sue you for possessing the domain ?)

It depends on the company / trademark holder

In some cases they'll send you threatening letters, in others they'll start a UDRP (or similar)

Of course some of the trademark holders are just chancing their arm, as they've tried to protect very broad and generic terms

There is legislation regarding cybersquatting as well ....

 

[mneylon]

I did it by mistake a while ago ( I still own the domains), but I did have some trouble with it...
It's a risk, but so is everything else...

Yes, but you did it by accident. The brand in question wasn't that well known, so it was an honest mistake

 

[Forbairt]

Yes, but you did it by accident. The brand in question wasn't that well known, so it was an honest mistake

Allowed to talk about it ?

 

[louie]

Love to, but it's a big NO.

 

[nevf]

Love to, but it's a big NO.

Well if you dont mind me asking, what was the result? or least to say who's favour the result was in?

 

[raul]

If you knew a domain that included a trademark was available, would you register it?

Please do not throw stones but.....I do this regularly.
At the end of the day is up to you if you want to take risks and complicate your life or not.
Most of the times you'll lose a reg fee...unless you do something really stupid with that domain name.

 

[mneylon]

Please do not throw stones but.....I do this regularly.
At the end of the day is up to you if you want to take risks and complicate your life or not.
Most of the times you'll lose a reg fee...unless you do something really stupid with that domain name.

What's the worst that's happened to you?

 

[louie]

Well if you dont mind me asking, what was the result? or least to say who's favour the result was in?

Shut it down, got a different name, start again. Still have the domains.

 

[nevf]

Shut it down, got a different name, start again. Still have the domains.

ah thats kinda annoying... lose-lose situation...


I say fúck it - go for it.
Then if the company get bitchy, sell it back to them for a hundred euro...

 

[louie]

In this type of situations you have to be really careful what you do and say, specially in writing....

 

[mneylon]

In this type of situations you have to be really careful what you do and say, specially in writing....

When the legal threats land on your desk I guess you have to take them seriously

 

[louie]

Definitely, but than it depends the way it arrives as well.
In my case I only took it seriously after the 5th attempt, as 1st was an email, 2nd to 4th were regular posted letters, while the fifth was registered...

 

[raul]

Only once happened that I had to give the domain . ( that was the worst so...no big deal ).
Most of the times after the second letter ( if ever comes ) I just sell the domain ( you'll be amazed by how many people are on the lookout for trademarked domain names ) OR I just take the website down and keep the name unused ( ex. : outlookexpress.info ; .us ...)
The following quote helped me a lot in the past in dealing with trademark issues and if I remember where I've found this I'll post a link ( I have it as a Word copy ) - apologies for the lenght of quote:

" You can use a trademark in a blog's name or in a blog title if it is relevant to the subject of your discussion and does not confuse people into thinking the trademark holder endorses your content. Courts have found that non-misleading use of trademarks in URLs and domain names of critical websites is fair. (Bally Total Fitness Holding Corp. v. Faber, URL http://www.compupix.com/ballysuck ; Bosley Medical Institute v. Kremer, domain name Request Free Information about hair loss and hair restoration from Bosley). Companies can get particularly annoyed about these uses because they may make your post appear in search results relating to the company, but that doesn't give them a right to stop you.
Sometimes, you might use a trademark without even knowing someone claims it as a trademark. That is permitted as long as you're not making commercial use in the same category of goods or services for which the trademark applies. Anyone can sell diesel fuel even though one company has trademarked DIESEL for jeans. Only holders of "famous" trademarks, like CocaCola, can stop use in all categories, but even they can't block non-commercial uses of their marks.
While trademark law prevents you from using someone else's trademark to sell your competing products (you can't make and sell your own "Rolex" watches or name your blog "Newsweek"), it doesn't stop you from using the trademark to refer to the trademark owner or its products (offering repair services for Rolex watches or criticizing Newsweek's editorial decisions). That kind of use, known as "nominative fair use," is permitted if using the trademark is necessary to identify the products, services, or company you're talking about, and you don't use the mark to suggest the company endorses you. In general, this means you can use the company name in your review so people know which company or product you're complaining about. You can even use the trademark in a domain name (like walmartsucks.com), so long as it's clear that you're not claiming to be or speak for the company.
Since trademark law is designed to protect against consumer confusion, non-commercial uses are even more likely to be fair. Be aware that advertising may give a "commercial" character to your site, and some courts have even gone so far as to say that links to commercial sites makes a site commercial.

You can find more helpful things here : FAQ about Trademark -- Chilling Effects Clearinghouse and ,as I said , if I remember where I've got the quoted text I'll post a link to it.

 

[raul]

In this type of situations you have to be really careful what you do and say, specially in writing....

Ohhh yes,very well said!