If a trademark is registered today for a particular name, but some corresponding variants of that domain name (ending in various TLDs such as .net, .us, etc) are currently already registered, is there a likely winner if a dispute occurrs as to who is the rightful owner of that domain name?

How does the answer change if the currently registered domain names are not being used for any personal or 'legitimate' business practices, but rather to present link sites whose purpose is to generate ad revenue, and that have little to no connection to the context implied by its domain name (as a humorous example, http://www.billgates.com)?

And on a slightly unrelated note, what is the nature of such link sites in trademark law and domain name dispute resolution? Do you know (through any legal precedents or other sources) whether there is a clear favor in domain name law for or against these sites when they fight domain name litigation?

Also, is there an industry term for such link sites, or is 'link sites' the best I can do?

Thanks.

Hi,

The only thing I can say on this subject is that, to my opinion, if someone's registered a trademark, it doesn't mean he automatically receives the right to legally discourage everyone to register a domain that will contain the name that the trademark does. Similarly, you can choose for your domain any name you'd wish regardless the fact it mirrors the name of a famous person.

However, it's just my personal opinion and those who are experts on this may disprove me.

Regards,

If the domain name exists before the trademark is registered then the trademark owner will not win a "reverse hijacking" attempt, by the trademark owner taking filing an UDRP (ICANN's Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy) case. The rightful owner of the domain is the existing registrant. If the content of the domain is unrelated to the trademark owners products altogether, then the existing registrant would probably retain the domain even if it was registered after the trademark is issued.

The domain owner can do pretty much what he likes with the domain. If the domain name is widgets.com and the trademark is widgets, he can sell widgets, for example. They might lose if they switch to selling widgets (from something unrelated) after the issuance of the trademark.

These "link sites" are usually domains which are not in normal use (with website) but are parked with certain link providers which provide income to the domain owner should a surfer click on those links. This income is called Pay Per Click, or PPC for short.

I thought you can sued if you register a trademarked name?

The articles from the link below are as relevant today as when they were written
back then:

http://gigalaw.com/articles/domainnames.html

I thought you can sued if you register a trademarked name?

Not if you are not infringing on the trademark.