Cyber Law

To domain within the law, specifically with regards to trademarked domains, what is the exact position? What is cyber squatting? Should I be concerned about these issues? What is the general advice, regarding the registration of company and corporation trademark domain names? Need I be concerned about these issues and if so, why?

To domain successfully and profitably and to domain within the law, that is to register domain names via a names registrar, you will need to be aware of a few facts regarding the exact lowdown of trademark company and corporation domains.

Without going into indepth legal language, which will fly off over the top of many people's heads, here it is in a nutshell:

There is a lot of bad advice being bandied around these forums regarding the registration of other companies trademarked domain names.

Every experienced domainer will tell you the same thing.

You do not register trademarked domains - full stop!

A trademark company, corporate name is registered as such to protect a company or corporation brand.

If you register a domain name which has a trademark word within it, with the sole intention of making profit from that name, you are basically riding on the back of the company in question, their good trading name.

By diverting intentionally traffic away from their website, you are in effect stealing their traffic and damaging their business and reputation.

Hefty penalties can be leveled at you in the tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars for infringing upon the rightful ownership of a trademark domain name. This has happened before and no doubt, will happen again, many times in the future too. Cyber squatting is a HUGE no no, you just don't partake in it in the absolute slightest.

It would seem that this message has to be drummed into many new domainers heads, before they fully get the message and understand the possible consequences of their actions if they insist on partaking in this illegal activity.

If you have ever asked yourself, what is cyber squatting? This is exactly what it is.

This includes ALL typo's of a registered trademark. Your clear intention by using a typo domain is to steal traffic from the trademark company to benefit yourself financially or otherwise.

I've used this illustration before a few times.

Lets take the word, 'APPLE'. Apple is a registered trademark.

Now, if you registered a domain name: AppleComputersRus.com .net or .whatever, it would be committing trademark violation and the Apple corporation would be within every legal right to sue you for everything that you own, if you decided to use this domain to financially benefit yourself.

On the other hand, if you registered a domain name: AmericanAppleCider.com and on this domain you set up a website about U.S. apple cider producers etc, you should be ok.

If in doubt, always consult a lawyer / attorney / solicitor first who is experienced upon the subject and is in a proper position to advise you.