Heavy metal band Slipknot dismisses lawsuit over slipknot.com domain

Band never served the domain name owner.

The heavy metal band Slipknot has voluntarily dismissed a cybersquatting lawsuit it filed against the domain name slipknot.com.

Slipknot.com was registered in 2001, and the band was formed in the 1990s.

In its lawsuit, the band argued that the domain name owner used the domain to profit from the band’s name. It provided a screenshot of pay-per-click ad links for “concert tickets”, “Slipknot merchandise”, and “concert vip packages.” It also claimed that when you click “Slipknot Merchandise” and click the first ad, the results page shows counterfeit merchandise.

The band filed the lawsuit in rem, meaning it was against the domain name itself, not the registrant. Oftentimes, the domain owner won’t show up to defend the domain in in rem cases.

But in this case, the domain was registered to a company called Slipknot Online Services, Ltd. The company showed up in court to defend the domain name.

The band didn’t take its case very far. This week, lawyers for the domain owner filed a motion to dismiss, stating that the band didn’t serve the registrant within the time required by the court.

The next day, Slipknot filed a notice of voluntary dismissal. The dismissal is without prejudice, meaning the band reserves the right to relitigate the matter.