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Letter from company director

Discussion in 'Domain Name Disputes' started by noonoo1, May 11, 2015.

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  1. noonoo1

    noonoo1 Retired Member

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    Hi,

    Yesterday I had a letter from a company director who had written to me by email saying that i should take my site down within 7 days as their site is trademarked.

    Their business is trade marked for for a 3 word phrase.

    Mine is a two word phrase. (The phrase is similar)

    I'm operating in a similar business as theirs but its very relevant to my business.

    I have never offered this name for sale to this company or anyone else.

    The director then offered me £££ to buy my site.

    Its a .co.uk

    Fun and games now begin.

    What are your thoughts ?
     
  2. Domain Forum

    Acorn Domains Elite Member

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    IWA Meetup
     
  3. newguy United Kingdom

    newguy Well-Known Member

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    Hard to know without more specifics, though the fact he offered to buy it maybe suggests he's not sure where he stands either.
     
  4. noonoo1

    noonoo1 Retired Member

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    Yes i thought that. A single panelist will cost approx £1,100 , 3 panelists is approx £3,000

    If claimant wants a single or three panel he pays for the costs including legal fees.

    So i guess they don't want to pay the legal fees as it would probably cost them at the minimum £2,500
     
  5. accelerator United Kingdom

    accelerator Well-Known Member

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    Could your two word phrase be described as generic? If so, you may have a defence on the basis that it is generic.
     
  6. noonoo1

    noonoo1 Retired Member

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    Yes, the two words are generic.
     
  7. invincible

    invincible Well-Known Member

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    Since you have said that the domain name is a .co.uk all of the above is entirely irrelevant as it relates to the UDRP, not the Nominet DRS which applies to .uk domain names.

    How the DRS works.
     
  8. noonoo1

    noonoo1 Retired Member

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    Thanks for that, you're a font of knowledge.
     
  9. Admin

    Admin Administrator Staff Member

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    are they generic words in their own right? or only generic and tied to the market segment because of the other business?

    You could say "acorn" + "domains" are generic words but I could claim they only go together in the domain world due to my activities.

    Admin
     
  10. foz

    foz Well-Known Member

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    PM the domains and will provide guidance.

    DRS is £750 plus VAT, time and legal fees (if you respond, £200 if not).
     
  11. accelerator United Kingdom

    accelerator Well-Known Member

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    Feel free to PM me the details too if you want my opinion.

    Rgds
     
  12. UncleBob United Kingdom

    UncleBob Active Member

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    please do not take this as sound or solid legal advice, but everything you have said suggests that this company director has got it into his head that a scare tactic will make the sound of just buying the domain off you seem sweeter and a relief.

    if it's a generic phrase and you are in competition, not cashing in or trying to build on their name, that's the end of that.
     
  13. fabpack United Kingdom

    fabpack Active Member

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    When was your domain registered and when was theirs registered?
     
  14. sdsinc Iceland

    sdsinc Active Member

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    That's the question, but also:

    Which of the two starting trading first ?

    Reasoning: the second comer should have known about the possible competitors, and refrained from using a name that could be construed as confusingly similar.
     
  15. noonoo1

    noonoo1 Retired Member

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    Their domain name is different from my domain name left of the dot.
     
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