I really want a domain, but it is taken, and adding an "s" to the end would still work for me, but is there any legal issue to this? The registered domain is in use but it looks like it hasn't been updated in a LONG time and it is just a personal picture page where the owner just uploads nature pictures.
If the current registrant is not using the term in commerce (read: trademark), then ideally there shouldn't necessarily be an issue. OTOH, TM infringement is an inherent risk anyway that registrants like you and me ought to be aware of and prepare for.
It would be best if you dont take any chances with trademarked domains in plural format. Chances are there that they would be able to prove that your domain infringe their rights when you make money in the future. Consult a lawyer for any professional advice.
If any of you remember a couple years ago microsoft.com went after mikerowesoft.com for infringement. It was some kid and they ended up paying for a bunch of MS certs for him in exchange if they got the domain.
mikerowesoft.com and microsoft.com looks totally different to me.. If that kid had a good law guy could sue M$ for herasement
Well prove me you do and I'll be glad to learn from your post..till then just an useless post Aren't we here to discuss and learn ?! Also i see here posts from a bunch of scared kids when receive an email from a medium-big company come here and scream omg company X will sue me ,I'll loose everything i own ,I'll go to prison and get gang banged omg omg my life stops here !!! BullX..Most of the emails are just to intimidate the person involved .. So talk is talk law is law. Show me the law and then talk
Giving legal advice and opinions when you are "just learning" is probably not the best course unless you are just trying to pad your post count. Infringing upon a trademark and then attempting to sell the the domain to the TM holding can get you in a lot of trouble - the fine can be as high as $100,000 per name. Research: Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act Next, research phonetic and misspellings as they relate to trademarks and infringement. Be sure to find out the penalty for infringing upon a Federally Registered trademark, treble legal fees, and then research "common law" trademarks and how they are protected intellectual property.
NO! the kid cannot sue for millions but IF he had a good law guy, he could have kept his domain. i know the whole case and folowed it from beginning to end. if the kid was smart, he could have kept his domain but he made a wrong step by responding to a trap offer. when MS offered him the domain registration fees in exchange of transferring the domain to MS, the kid (well, his name is Mike so lets call him that) responded telling MS about the time, money, and dedication it took to extablish the site. in return, he asked for 10k which Mike thought would be a good trade off. but that was a bait. since MS could not easily take over Mike's domain, they played the guy. MS took over Mike's domain Under UDRP (Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy) complaint. UDRP protects patent holders with their registered trademarks. in order for a company to win UDRP complaint, the company must prove 3 things: 1. the domain name in question is confusingly similar, 2. the doman was registered in bad faith, and 3. the register does not have any legitimate interest in the domain name in dispute. since all 3 of the above had to be met, MS had to bait Mike to prove bad faith. since Mike said he would hand over the doman if he gets 10k, it went in MS's favor which they used to prove bad faith. you can read more on this searching for UDP and WIPO (world intelectual property organization)
Really? Then you know Microsoft got the domain name not through UDRP? You might want to read up again since you claim to know the whole case and followed it from beginning to end.
I have to disagree with you. The UDRP is only one way to deal with trademark infringement - which wasn't the case in this situation anyway. Microsoft would have sued him for infringement and would have won IMO. Mike Rowe received a lot of donations to fight the claim, however, it was my understanding that the legal advice he was given was to give up the domain. While Microsoft would have won in a full-blown court case, it was generating bad publicity for them and Microsoft wound up giving him some Xbox videos and a subscription to MSDN for the domain. I don't think any court would have believed adding "soft" to his name wasn't a case of bad faith. You cannot use your real name if there is an attempt to ride the goodwill of an established trademark.... i.e. if your parents named you "Donald Trump" you can't go out and open up a casino called "Trump Casino".