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De Beers Wins Dispute over ‘DeBeers.feedback’
The case has set a new intellectual property precedent regarding generic top-level domains.
London--A case brought by De Beers regarding a generic top-level domain (an internet extension, such as .com, .org, .info, etc.) has set a new intellectual property precedent.
In January, a company called Domain Admin, Whois Privacy Corp. of Nassau, New Providence, Bahamas registered the domain name “DeBeers.feedback.”
The site features 11 customer reviews of De Beers, as well as contact information for the company and links to DeBeers.com, the website for the chain of stores the company operates in conjunction with LVMH, and some of De Beers’ social platforms.
A disclaimer at the bottom of the website’s main page states, “This site is provided to facilitate free speech regarding De Beers. No direct endorsement or association should be conferred.”
De Beers filed a complaint against Domain Admin, Whois Privacy Corp. in July with the World Intellectual Property Organization’s (WIPO) Arbitration and Mediation Center.
WIPO is a “self-funding agency of the United Nations, with 189 member states,” according to its website. It was established in 1967 and is headquartered in Geneva.
In the complaint, De Beers asked for the domain name to be transferred to them, arguing that “.feedback” domains are “intended to be used by brand owners to provide a convenient feedback channel for their public,” and that they had no affiliation with Domain Admin, Whois Privacy Corp.
De Beers also questioned the veracity of the posted customer reviews, and said that the site’s disclaimer is not very apparent.
This month, WIPO’s Arbitration and Mediation Center decided in favor of De Beers, noting in the administrative panel decision, De Beers Intangibles Limited v. Domain Admin, Whois Privacy Corp., that the disputed domain name is “identical to that trademark, disregarding the domain “.feedback.”
The case really hinged, however, on De Beers proving that at least some of the site’s reviews were falsified. WIPO’s decision noted that “at least five reviews now appear on the website that are dated before March 24, 2016 but did not appear on the website when printed out on March 24, 2016,” which it went on to deem “extremely suspicious.”
Domain Admin, Whois Privacy Corp. did not respond to the claims by a set deadline, which allowed the case to proceed without them.
This is the first such case in which a brand has been able to regain ownership of a domain name relating to a generic top-level domain.
De Beers was represented by Bird & Bird, an
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international law firm with offices in dozens of cities across Europe and Asia.
Phil Sherrell, an intellectual property partner at Bird & Bird said of the decision, “This is an important victory for brand owners in the battle to keep control over the ever-expanding number of available domain names.”
“We’re very pleased,” said a De Beers spokesperson. “Luxury businesses such as De Beers make huge investments over a number of generations to grow the value of their brand, and any misuse of our IP could seriously undermine our brand equity.”
This is one of several recent victories for De Beers in the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center. This year, De Beers has brought at least five cases against companies and/or individuals, alleging they misused De Beers’ trademarks in various domain names.
In each of the five cases National Jeweler located, WIPO ruled that the domain names should be transferred to De Beers.
Phil Sherrell, an intellectual property partner at Bird & Bird said of the decision, “This is an important victory for brand owners in the battle to keep control over the ever-expanding number of available domain names.”
“We’re very pleased,” said a De Beers spokesperson. “Luxury businesses such as De Beers make huge investments over a number of generations to grow the value of their brand, and any misuse of our IP could seriously undermine our brand equity.”
This is one of several recent victories for De Beers in the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center. This year, De Beers has brought at least five cases against companies and/or individuals, alleging they misused De Beers’ trademarks in various domain names.
In each of the five cases National Jeweler located, WIPO ruled that the domain names should be transferred to De Beers.
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