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Trademarking a name and domain is taken

Discussion in 'Legal Issues' started by Brylo, Aug 16, 2016.

  1. #1
    I'm in the process of obtaining a trademark. The domain named is taken already so I created one that was similar by just adding a - between two words. The thing is that the owner of the original domain I want isn't using the name itself, the domain redirects to his actual website. which never mentions my name. For example, my website's name is this-website.com, he owns thiswebsite.com but when you type it in it takes you to completelydifferent.com. Now I'm currently small so I'm not too weird about it now, but is there anyway I would be able to acquire it in the future?
     
    Brylo, Aug 16, 2016 IP
  2. sarahk

    sarahk iTamer Staff

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    #2
    Hope the guy let's it drop without discovering you exist. Once he knows about you he'll know that his domain just went up in value! You may still be happy to buy it at the revised price of your business is going well, or it may no longer be necessary
     
    sarahk, Aug 17, 2016 IP
  3. pmf123

    pmf123 Notable Member

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    #3
    i would always get the name before anyone knows it will be trademarked, and if it isn't for sale, pick a new name.

    He will be getting all of your traffic, domains with - suck
     
    pmf123, Aug 17, 2016 IP
    jrbiz and billzo like this.
  4. jrbiz

    jrbiz Acclaimed Member

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    #4
    Here's a little tip: if the name is already in use, your efforts to trademark it will likely fail. Do what @pmf123 suggests and find a new one.
     
    jrbiz, Aug 19, 2016 IP
  5. Brylo

    Brylo Peon

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    #5
    The name isn't really being used. It's never mentioned at all. Just a redirect. Is that pretty much the same thing?
     
    Brylo, Aug 19, 2016 IP
  6. jrbiz

    jrbiz Acclaimed Member

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    #6
    Should you end up in court over the trademark and the owner of the domain shows that he registered that domain name years ahead of your use of it, he will have one argument in his favor. If he then can point to other uses of the trade name offline (e.g., on a data sheet that he had printed up, or an ad he ran in the newspaper) he has an even stronger case and that is not something that you have visibility into. In general, it is not worth using a trade name that is already taken by someone else.
     
    Last edited: Aug 19, 2016
    jrbiz, Aug 19, 2016 IP
    JEET likes this.
  7. pmf123

    pmf123 Notable Member

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    #7
    offer the guy some low ball number, only downside will be that he then knows you want to buy it
     
    pmf123, Aug 19, 2016 IP
  8. billzo

    billzo Well-Known Member

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    #8
    As far as the USA goes, the court system is starting to crack down on trademark, copyright, and patent trolls.

    Original poster: The "perfect" domain name is something we all want. Fact is that all the perfect names are taken. In the end, the content you put up is more important than your domain name and is what will keep people coming back. Most people will visit your site by clicking on a search engine link or another link or come from their bookmarks, meaning they will not be typing your entire domain name into their browser. Just keep that in mind when looking for an alternative.

    A sensible person would sell it if it results in a profit. The thing about domainers is that most of them are living in fantasy land where they think they can make a huge sum of money for an unremarkable domain name. I contacted a guy about a domain name of the city I live in and he wanted over $2,500 for it. A big joke. Still, he's going to hold on to it just hoping some sucker comes along, and it will never happen. But he'll hold on to it year after year.
     
    billzo, Aug 20, 2016 IP
  9. Brylo

    Brylo Peon

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    #9
    Thanks for the reply! What do you think of the domain as far as having the - in it? I was actually pretty satisfied with it.
     
    Brylo, Aug 20, 2016 IP
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  10. billzo

    billzo Well-Known Member

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    #10
    A dash in a domain name is always bad in my opinion and of many others. It says to me, "I couldn't think of a better domain name without a dash and could not afford to buy a name." However, there are some websites that are quite successful with a dash in the domain name. Still, dashes suck. Last resort only in my opinion. Brainstorm some ideas first. Ask the owner of the one you want if he/she will sell.

    I have entered upwards of 800 domain ideas into a spreadsheet before I decided on a good one to register.
     
    billzo, Aug 20, 2016 IP
  11. dscurlock

    dscurlock Prominent Member

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    #11
    that it true...

    It would be great to have that perfect domain, which can be help, and tip the scale in your favor.
    however, I have seen many success sites that have crazy domain types, including hyphens; It wasnt
    the domain itself that made them success; It was the hard work of making the site successful...

    Do you think Papa Johns Pizza has to do constant content marketing, and link building? absolutely not...
    he did his work, made his brand, and earned his way through hard work of making excellent pizzas...

    Joe Blows Pizza did not get so lucky, in order for this guy to get on the map, he has to do alot of
    google/local listings, lots of content marketing to get ranked, and backlinks to boot....

    So yes, the perfect domain name could be PapaJohnsPizza.com, and everyone else has to settle
    for domains like JoeBlowsPizza.com and they to work 100 times more in order to get noticed....

    It also comes down to preference...do I really want that domain
    even though it may have other symbols in the domain...?
    personally, If it is not a dot.com straight out, then I wont look at it.
    as we all know dot.com are the most popular, and sought after domains.
     
    dscurlock, Sep 7, 2016 IP
  12. IG2010

    IG2010 Well-Known Member

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    #12
    One question, what this domain name is doing on google, is it even on it? most redirected domain are dropped by google.

    As per the dash, well, I somehow agree with what being said above, however, as I made a webiste for a customer, she wanted her initials and the word services, indeed as her initials is a comon use of 2 letters, it was registered already, in mind it's a local business, so her domain name in local searches went above the "original" name even with the dash
     
    IG2010, Oct 5, 2016 IP
  13. klimbo13

    klimbo13 Banned

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    #13
    If the trademark wasn't registered until after you registered the domain name that would be a strong argument in your favor that you didn't do anything wrong. Of course technically a trademark is valid from its first use in business and not just its registration date, so if you already heard about a name someone was going to call a service or product and you rush out and get a matching domain name before they finish with the registration you could still be considered infringing.
     
    klimbo13, Aug 31, 2018 IP
  14. pmf123

    pmf123 Notable Member

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    #14
    a - domain is only good if you can get good search rankings with it, which basically means it could be any domain with decent SEO.

    no one is going to remember to put the - if someone tells them the domain
     
    pmf123, Aug 31, 2018 IP
  15. misssmiles

    misssmiles Peon

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    #15
    I had this problem with my trademark paragon tools. The USA paragontools domain was taken and I had to pay $2000 USD to get it. I used the go daddy negotiation service to get it. I didn't do international trademark just Australian one and now there is an paragon diamond tools in America. So frustrating!!
     
    misssmiles, Apr 15, 2020 IP
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  16. JEET

    JEET Notable Member

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    #16
    I have a question here.
    There are so many TLDs in domain names. If one TLD owner (.com) can take the OP to court based on his registration/use of "ThisWebsite", can't other TLD owners do the same then?
    How many domains will OP keep on buying?
     
    JEET, Apr 15, 2020 IP