Red Bull spends big bucks disputing domains, then let’s them go.
Is it possible that Red Bull’s lawyers are too caffeinated when they file domain name disputes through UDRP?
More than perhaps any other company, Red Bull finds itself winning domains at UDRP that are “canceled” instead of “transferred”. This means that the current registration is deleted and the domains become available for re-registration rather than being transferred to the winner.
I’ve seen cases where a panelist accidentally declares a domain canceled, but it would appear that Red Bull’s lawyers may be to blame for these cases. How else you can explain over 70 domains it has won at UDRP being canceled? Surely its lawyers are asking for domains to be canceled rather than transferred.
And what happens to those domains after they’re canceled? Red Bull is lax about picking them up. I checked the status of all 72 domains I’ve found canceled on behalf of Red Bull that have gone through deletion. Red Bull currently owns only four of them. All four of those were from one case, too.
12 of the canceled domains were subsequently registered by another party and fully 56 of them are currently available for registration.
mike says
I guess when they can make 3000% on any 1 can of redbull they got some cash to waste heheh
jontay says
The lawyers must be drinking Red Bull. I had one today and I can’t stop typing. Luckily, I can only type typos.
Ace says
Looks like job security to me. Some folks will give in to the temptation of registering the name and another case filed by the lawyers. Moreover, this time around the amount of work would be less as they can copy paste the arguments from the previous case of the domain name.
Justin Allen says
Whats frightening to me is how much I love RedBull (2 today!). In terms of stupidity though, this one isn’t as bad as the court appointed receiver who allowed domains to expire.
Jeremy Leader says
The question is, how many UDRPs do they have to file to scare off other people from registering typos of their trademark? Maybe it’s cheaper to pay a few UDRP fees every few years, and not have to pay registration fees on every possible typo every year?
DomainersChoice.com says
Maybe they don’t want have these domains for their own but by going after them they try to send a message to the “cybersquatters” not to mess with their TM.
Attila says
Red Bull, stop UDRP’ing cause it doesn’t cost the squatter any money to defend themselves. Sure they lose the domain, what do they care, they just go register another one.
File a UDRP is $3k + lawyers fees. My advice, find a local lawyer where the squatter lives and file a copyright infringement suit. This will send a CLEAR message to squatters that “hey, I might be next” and put them in worry it will actually cost them to protect themselves.
Filing UDRP’s is a waste of time and money. You’re sending the wrong message. Why send them the message “we will take back the domain and won’t cost you a dime” when you can be sending a physical courier to their personal living space (home) serving them summons to appear in court of law for copyright infringement…
If someone showed up at my doorstep in China, I’d laugh, invite them in and pay them double that they never served me. But if I were in US, I’d be dropping some alka seltzers in my water to clear my gut from trembling.