Tourism group let the domain name expire ten years ago and is trying to get it back.
The good news for the domain owner is that he won this case. The bad news is that he still faces a related court action in Switzerland.
Gstaad is a ski and vacation region in Switzerland. Gstaad Saanenland Tourismus, a tourism board for the area, filed the dispute.
Gstaad Saanenland Tourismus uses the domain name Gstaad.ch. Until 2006 is also owned Gstaad.com but if failed to renew it.
That’s when Dimitri Dimitriadis bought the domain name in an expired domain name auction for $31,250. He put the domain name to use promoting businesses in the area, including his own.
Immediately after registering the domain name, Dimitriadis heard from Gstaad Saanenland Tourismus’ lawyers. Dimitriadis’ lawyer at the time communicated with them and pointed out many reasons why a UDRP would be unsuccessful.
When Gstaad Saanenland Tourismus filed the case at the end of last year it failed to mention the discussions that took place a decade ago.
The three-person panel found that Dimitriadis has rights or legitimate interests in the domain name and did not register it in bad faith. The panel declined to find reverse domain name hijacking despite giving “serious consideration” to the matter. The panel was particularly concerned that the filing didn’t mention the communications between the parties that took place in 2007.
The panel noted that this is the third UDRP case the complainant has lost and that future panels might not be forgiving.
Although I find some fault in the panel not finding RDNH, its decision should still dissuade the complainant from filing future UDRPs with similar facts. Also, I give the panel credit for a very well-reasoned decision in this case. The decision will certainly be cited in the future.
Weinmann Zimmerli represented the complainant and John Berryhill represented the respondent.
Give the man his 2 million…and put that puppy on auto-renew next time
Interesting case in Australia a few years back over the rights in the word “Thredbo”. Thredbo is probably the best known Australian ski resort area.
Whilst not a UDRP, the owner of Thredbo.com.au (a big corporation) took the owner of Thredbo.com (small business operator) to Federal Court over IP rights in the name – and they lost (including appeals to the Full Court).
Here’s a good article from an Australian IP Lawyer entitled:
“Thredbo trade mark case highlights the difficulty with using a geographic place as a brand name”.
This excerpt summarizes:
“The case is also noteworthy because it provides useful guidance about when domain names, websites and Facebook pages do not constitute misleading and deceptive conduct in breach of the Australian Consumer Law, or passing off.”
I believe this Case has been cited many times! Here’s a summation if anyone is interested: http://www.davies.com.au/ip-news/thredbo-trade-mark-case-highlights-the-difficulty-with-using-a-geographic-p
i‘ve known dimitri for a long time since i live in gstaad and greece ( where he has a house aswell ) and i can tell u man this guy is a complete jerk. fooling everyone to get to the money.