Company tries to get domain it let expire in 2015 back through UDRP.
A three-member World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) panel has found that DSPA B.V. in the Netherlands tried to reverse domain name hijack the domain name DSPA.com.
The maker of fire-suppression aerosols forgot to renew the domain name in 2015. At that point, domain name registrar Tucows took the name into its portfolio. The Respondent in the case acquired the domain for $770 when Tucows auctioned it on NameJet in 2017.
The Complainant argued that the Respondent opportunistically acquired the domain when it let it expire. It either didn’t accurately research the history of the domain name or tried to mislead the panel.
Strangely, it also argued that, although panels accept that people can hold acronym domain names for resale as a bona fide business, this four-letter domain is not an acronym.
The WIPO panel said it would have found reverse domain name hijacking even without the Respondent’s argument or evidence of false statements:
The Panel finds that the Complaint is deficient, and that the Complainant has provided no evidence that the Respondent should have known of the Complainant. Further, the Complainant has ignored prior decisions under the Policy that clearly demonstrate the hopelessness of the Complainant’s position.
However, the additional information sealed the deal.
NLO Shieldmark B.V. represented the Complainant. John Berryhill represented the domain owner.
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