When your reseller registers your domain name

A situation that we at Dotkeeper often encounter and advice our costumers about is when companies with local resellers come into conflict about the rights of a certain domain name.

As a trademark owner you should strive to always own and have technical control over your domain names. A cooperation can be terminated for several different reasons – and when such occurs it can be very problematic and resource intensive to write “back” the domains to the rightful owners.

It is important to remember that the one that has technical control over a domain can – consciously as well as unconsciously – hurt the trademark, for instance through redirecting the address or shutting down e-mail.

Here are five useful tips where we at Dotkeeper advice you about, to avoid coming into conflict about ownership of your domain names.

1. Domain name policy

A domain name policy is an internal control document which, for instance, addresses what domain names your company should register and what the process for the domain name registration looks like, including what ownership details the domains are supposed to be put at and what suppliers you should employ. To have such in place assists you to have better control and structure over your domain ownership.

2. Proactivity

Make sure to already from the beginning have a written agreement with your retailers which states that they do not own the right to register domain names with your products or trademarks. These type of issues are always easier to handle initially in a cooperation – not subsequently.

3. Act immediately

When information about an unauthorized registration of a domain is received with your trademark, we recommend you to quickly act upon and move the domain name/s so that you promptly obtain technical control.

4. Have a proactive and iterative approach to your domain name ownership

By regularly reviewing your domain name ownership, you can ensure that you are protecting your interests. In case that you do not have your own local companies, which is sometimes required to register certain domains, you can utilize services such as “local presence”. “Local presence” offers a safe and cost efficient alternative to prevent this type of problem.

5. Monitor

There are services for monitoring that informs you if a trespassing occurs by reporting when domain names with your monitored words are registered. Invest in such a tool if you desire full control and a good night of sleep.

What do I do when a former retailer registers “my” domain name?

A common first-step is to send out emails to retailers explaining that you have a policy, which states that you are the one owning the local domain names and forbid retailers to register matching domains. If it is already an infected relation, maybe the right thing to do would be to send an informative letter of warning through a legal representative.

Thereafter the proceedings may set apart. Different top domains have different rules around how you can follow through with possible disputes. For instance, .SE offers an alternative dispute resolution, which is a smooth alternative of a legal process for trademark owners.
Though, there are also top domains where corresponding alternatives are court processes. Germany, with their .DE-domain, is an example of such.

To succeed in those cases where dispute resolution is offered, you usually need to meet these three following requirements:

1. Do you have a name connection to the domain, for instance that the domain matches a registered trademark or the company name?

2. Can you prove that the current owner does not have a legitimate connection to the domain?
3. Can you prove that the current owner has acted in bad faith (mischievously) with their registration and ownership?

If the answer is yes to the above standing questions, then you have a case given that the discussion fails.

A sometimes easier and faster alternative for legal proceedings is acquisition. Or in other words, to buy off the domain. Here, it is always recommended to operate with secure processes when it comes to payments and transfer of the domain name – for the sake of both the buyer and seller.

What do I do now?

Are you considering the next step? An initial statement with recommendations is always free with us. Do contact us and we will have one of our experts to help you.