National Arbitration Forum

 

DECISION

 

RockResorts International LLC and The Vail Corporation v. HempWorld, Inc. c/o Matthijs Huijgen

Claim Number: FA0709001082160

 

PARTIES

Complainant is RockResorts International LLC and The Vail Corporation (“Complainants”), represented by Jennifer Daniel Collins, of Faegre & Benson, LLP, 1700 Lincoln St., Suite 3200, Denver, CO 80203-4532.  Respondent is HempWorld, Inc. c/o Matthijs Huijgen (“Respondent”), 27 West Anapamu Street, Suite 101-335, Santa Barbara, CA 93101.

 

REGISTRAR AND DISPUTED DOMAIN NAME

The domain name at issue is <rockresort.com>, registered with Dotster.

 

PANEL

The undersigned certifies that he or she has acted independently and impartially and to the best of his or her knowledge has no known conflict in serving as Panelist in this proceeding.

 

Hon. Charles A. Kuechenmeister (Ret.)

 

PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Complainant submitted a Complaint to the National Arbitration Forum (the “Forum”) electronically on September 25, 2007; the Forum received a hard copy of the Complaint on September 26, 2007.

 

On September 26, 2007, Dotster confirmed by e-mail to the Forum that the <rockresort.com> domain name is registered with Dotster and that the Respondent is the current registrant of the name.  Dotster has verified that Respondent is bound by the Dotster registration agreement and has thereby agreed to resolve domain-name disputes brought by third parties in accordance with ICANN’s Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Policy”).

 

On October 9, 2007, a Notification of Complaint and Commencement of Administrative Proceeding (the “Commencement Notification”), setting a deadline of October 29, 2007 by which Respondent could file a Response to the Complaint, was transmitted to Respondent via e-mail, post and fax, to all entities and persons listed on Respondent’s registration as technical, administrative and billing contacts, and to postmaster@rockresort.com by e-mail.

 

A timely Response was received and determined to be complete on October 29, 2007.

An Additional Submission by Complainant conforming to Forum Supplemental Rule 7 was received by the Forum on November 5, 2007 and an Additional Submission by Respondent conforming to Forum Supplemental Rule 7 was received by the Forum on November 13, 2007.  Both were considered by the Panel along with all other evidence in the case.

 

On November 6, 2007, pursuant to Complainant’s request to have the dispute decided by a single-member Panel, the National Arbitration Forum appointed the Honorable Charles A. Kuechenmeister (Ret.) as Panelist.

 

RELIEF SOUGHT

Complainant requests that the domain name be transferred from Respondent to Complainant.

 

PARTIES’ CONTENTIONS

A.     Complainant

1.                  Complainant the Vail Corporation (“Vail”) is a corporation organized and existing under the laws of the State of Colorado, U.S.A.  Complainant RockResorts International LLC (“RockResorts”) is a limited liability company organized and existing under the laws of the State of Delaware, U.S.A.  It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Vail. 

 

2.                  RockResorts owns and Vail operates the RockResort brand of luxury lodging properties, which include dining, spas and fitness centers, golf courses and a variety of outdoor activities located in prime resort and vacation areas in the United States and on St. Lucia in the West Indies.

 

3.                  RockResorts holds valid registrations on the Principal Register for the trademarks and service marks ROCKRESORTS, R ROCKRESORTS and ROCKRESORT (the “ROCKRESORTS Marks”) in International Class 42 in connection with hotel, motel and resort lodging services, restaurant services, restaurant and bar services, hotel consulting advisory services for others, and hotel reservations, and in International Class 43 in connection with travel agency services (making reservations and booking for temporary lodging) and resort hotels. 

 

4.                  RockResorts first claimed use of the ROCKRESORTS Marks in October 1968 for travel agency services and hotel services, and in September 1999 for hotel consultancy services and hotel reservations.

 

5.                  RockResorts has granted authority to Vail the right to use the ROCKRESORTS Marks as the agent and operator of the RockResorts properties.

 

6.                  The ROCKRESORTS Marks have been extensively used and advertised by RockResorts and Vail and enjoy a high degree of recognition in the Untied States.  They are known throughout the United States and other places as identifying the RockResorts properties.  In light of their distinctiveness, the duration and extent of their use in connection with travel agency, hotel services and hotel reservations and their high degree of recognition, the ROCKRESORTS Marks are famous marks as defined in 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1125(c).

 

7.                  RockResorts and Vail are very active in electronic commerce, advertising the RockResorts properties and services on the website <rockresorts.com>.

 

8.                  Respondent registered the Domain Name on March 25, 1999.  It was using the Domain Name to direct Internet users to a website which contains links to goods and services related to vacation planning that compete with RockResorts’ and Vail’s business.

 

9.                  The Domain Name is identical to RockResorts’ trademark ROCKRESORT except for the addition of the generic top-level domain “.com.”

 

10.              At the time Respondent registered the Domain Name it had no trademark or intellectual property rights in it. 

 

11.              The website located at the Domain Name gives users the ability to click on one or more links related to categories of goods and services, some of which are related to hotels and hotel reservations.  It appears designed to generate “click through” advertising revenues for Respondent.

 

12.              Such use of the Domain Name does not qualify as a bona fide offering of goods and services pursuant to Policy 4(c)(i) or as a legitimate noncommercial or fair use of the Domain Name pursuant to Policy4(c)(iii).

 

13.              Respondent is not and has never been a licensee of RockResort or Vail with respect to the Domain Name.

 

14.              Respondent thus lacks any valid rights or legitimate interests in the Domain Name.

 

15.              At the time Respondent registered the Domain Name, the ROCKRESORTS Marks were sufficiently distinctive and famous to give constructive notice to Respondent that the registration would violate RockResorts’ and Vail’s rights.

 

16.              Respondent’s use of the Domain Name as described in paragraph 11 above was designed to attract Internet users to a website they could mistakenly believe was owned by RockResorts and Vail.

 

17.              RockResorts and Vail first learned of Respondent’s registration of the Domain Name shortly before mid-August 2007.  They promptly notified Respondent to cease and desist using the Domain Name and convey it to Complainants.

 

18.              When so notified by Complainants, Respondent demanded $29,000 as consideration for the same. 

 

B.     Respondent

1.                  Neither HempWorld, Inc. (“Respondent”) nor Matthijs Huijgen has ever operated or managed luxury lodging properties, nor has either of them ever operated the Domain Name for commercial gain.

 

2.                  Respondent has been an active registrant of internet domain names since 1995.  It currently owns approximately 500 domain names.  It only buys domain names and has never sold any of them, nor does it offer its domain names for sale to the public or to third parties.

 

3.                  When it registered the Domain Name in March 1995 Respondent also registered a number of other names including <hardrockresort.com>, <hardrockresorts.com>, <hardrockresorts.net>, <rockresort.net>, <rockresorts.net>, <rocksresort.com> and <rocksresorts.com>.

 

4.                  From the date it registered the Domain Name until Complainants first contacted it in August 2007 Respondent was not aware of the existence of a RockResorts. 

 

5.                  Based upon Complainants’ delay of some eight years in protesting Respondent’s use of the Domain Name, and based upon Complainants’ failure to protest at all the Responent’s use of the domain name <rockresort.net>, it appears that Complainants are abusing the UDRP in an effort simply to gain ownership of the Domain Name.

 

6.                  Respondent has not violated the rights of Complainants because it is not now and never has been engaged in any of the activities included in International Class 42 (hotel, motel and resort lodging services, restaurant services, restaurant and bar services, hotel consulting advisory services for others, and hotel reservations), or similar services.

 

7.                  Because Respondent is not engaged in any such activities, its use of the Domain Name was not intended to, nor does it create confusion with any lawful trademarks of the Complainants.  For this same reason it is evident that Respondent has not intentionally misled or diverted users away from Complainants’ website.

 

8.                  The WhoIs record attached to the Complaint demonstrates that no E-commerce was conducted from the site.

 

9.                  The <hemphotel.com> website cannot presently be accessed without the Internet Archive Wayback Machine and therefore is not presently accessible by the general public.

 

10.              The amount sought by Respondents as consideration to transfer the Domain Name to Complainants was a reasonable transfer fee.

 

11.              The services offered by Respondent on its websites are a bona fide offering of same.

 

12.              Respondent registered the Domain Name prior to the effective date of the Policy and is therefore not subject to its provisions.

 

C.   Additional Submission by Complainants

1.                  There is no evidence in the record that Respondent has ever been commonly known by the name “Rockresort,” “Rockresorts,” or “rockresorts.com.”

 

2.                  From 2001 to 2005, Respondent used the Domain Name to redirect Internet users to Respondent’s domain name <hempworldhotel.com>, which it registered in 1998.  It is currently an active, commercial “pay-per-click” site, where domain name owners like Respondent attempt to attract Internet users and then divert them to unrelated third party sites for a fee.  Currently, the Domain Name redirects Internet users to a website located at the domain name <hempisreatblaswersse.com>, another active, commercial “pay-per-click” site. 

 

3.                  After the Complaint was filed Respondent demanded $19,000 to transfer the Domain Name to Complainants.

 

D.   Additional Submission by Respondent

1.                  Respondent did not engage in activity for commercial gain nor did it compete with Complainants, i.e., operate a similar business.  Respondents never had a business operate at <rockresort.com>.

 

2.                  Complainants were negligent in waiting eight and one-half years to protest Respondent’s registration and use of the Domain Name.  Their delay has caused their trademark rights to become weak and meaningless over that time.

3.                  Respondent’s lack of awareness of Complainants’ ROCKRESORTS Marks until August 2007 is important.

4.                  Respondent does not operate any of its domains or businesses on the internet on a pay-per-click basis.  The Domain Name is not redirected to any domain with the specific economic gain of pay-per-click.  The domain <hempisreatblaswersse .com> is not operated or owned by Respondent.

5.                  Respondent attaches value to the Domain Name and in order for it or any domain name to be transferred, time and expense expended must be compensated.

6.                  The evidence submitted by Complainants is insufficient to establish their claim for transfer of the Domain Name, and cases cited by Complainants are not applicable to the circumstances of this case.

 

DISCUSSION AND FINDINGS

Paragraph 15(a) of the Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Rules”) instructs this Panel to “decide a complaint on the basis of the statements and documents submitted in accordance with the Policy, these Rules and any rules and principles of law that it deems applicable.”

 

Paragraph 4(a) of the Policy requires that the Complainant must prove each of the following three elements to obtain an order that a domain name should be cancelled or transferred:

 

(1)   the domain name registered by the Respondent is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in which the Complainant has rights;

(2)   the Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the domain name; and

(3)   the domain name has been registered and is being used in bad faith.

 

The Panel makes the findings and determinations set forth below with respect to the matters at issue between the parties.

 

Jurisdiction

Respondent asserts that it is not subject to the Policy because it registered the Domain Name in March 1999, prior to the effective date of the Policy.  Respondent furnished no details concerning its registration at that time, but it cannot have been with Dotster, the current registrar, because Dotster did not become operational until January 2000.  As Dotster verified to the National Arbitration Forum at the commencement of this proceeding, domain names registered with Dotster are subject to the Policy.  The Domain Name and Respondent’s registration of it are subject to the Policy.

 

Identical and/or Confusingly Similar

Complainants registered their ROCKRESORT mark with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) (Reg. 1,896,413 issued May 30, 1995).  See, Annex B to Complaint.  RockResorts first claimed use of the ROCKRESORTS Marks in October 1968 for travel agency services and hotel services, and in September 1999 for hotel consultancy services and hotel reservations.  The ROCKRESORTS Marks have been extensively used and advertised by RockResorts and Vail and enjoy a high degree of recognition in the Untied States.  They are known throughout the United States and other places as identifying the RockResorts properties.  In light of their distinctiveness, the duration and extent of their use in connection with travel agency, hotel services and hotel reservations, and their high degree of recognition, the ROCKRESORTS Marks are famous marks as defined in 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1125(c).  RockResorts has granted to Vail the authority to use the RockResorts Marks as the agent and operator of the RockResorts properties.

 

Complainants’ timely registration and subsequent use of the ROCKRESORT mark satisfactorily establishes their rights in the mark for purposes of Policy ¶ 4(a)(i).  See Mothers Against Drunk Driving v. phix, FA 174052 (Nat. Arb. Forum Sept. 25, 2003) (finding that the complainant’s registration of the MADD mark with the United States Patent and Trademark Office established the complainant’s rights in the mark for purposes of Policy ¶ 4(a)(i)); see also Ameridream, Inc. v. Russell, FA 677782 (Nat. Arb. Forum May 24, 2006) (holding that the complainant’s registration of the AMERIDREAM mark with the USPTO established its rights in the mark pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(a)(i)).

 

The Domain Name (<rockresort.com>) is identical to RockResorts’ trademark ROCKRESORT except for the addition of the generic top-level domain “.com.”  It contains Complainant’s protected mark in its entirety and merely adds the top-level domain “.com.”  The mere addition of a generic term and a top level domain to an otherwise identical mark fails to distinguish the disputed domain name sufficiently from the mark pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(a)(i).  See Fed’n of Gay Games, Inc. v. Hodgson, D2000-0432 (WIPO June 28, 2000) (finding that the domain name <gaygames.com> is identical to the complainant's registered trademark GAY GAMES); see also Snow Fun, Inc. v. O'Connor, FA 96578 (Nat. Arb. Forum Mar. 8, 2001) (finding that the domain name <termquote.com> is identical to the complainant’s TERMQUOTE mark).

 

The Domain Name is identical or confusingly similar to the ROCKRESORT trademark, in which the Complainants have substantial and demonstrated rights.

 

Rights or Legitimate Interests

Complainants assert and have presented evidence that Respondent has not used and is not using the Domain Name in connection with a bona fide offering of goods or services, and that it is not making a legitimate noncommercial or fair use of it, within the meaning of Policy ¶¶ 4(c)(i) and (iii).  They further assert and have presented evidence that neither the Respondent nor Mr. Huijgen has any trademark or other intellectual property right in the Domain Name.  Complainants further assert that Respondents have never been known by the name ROCKRESORT, ROCKRESORTS, or <rockresort.com>. 

 

Neither the name of the Respondent nor of its agent and representative, Mr. Huijgen, contains any form of the name “Rockresort” or any variation thereof.

 

Complainants having thus made a prima facie case in support of its allegations that Respondent has no right or legitimate interest in respect of the Domain Name, the burden shifts to Respondent to show that it does possess rights or legitimate interests pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(c).  See Do The Hustle, LLC v. Tropic Web, D2000-0624 (WIPO Aug. 21, 2000) (holding that, where the complainant has asserted that the respondent has no rights or legitimate interests with respect to the domain name, it is incumbent on the respondent to come forward with concrete evidence rebutting this assertion because this information is “uniquely within the knowledge and control of the respondent”).

 

Respondent has utterly failed to produce evidence supporting any rights or legitimate interest it may have in respect of the Domain Name.  It claims a legitimate interest based upon (i) its registration of the Domain Name and (ii) its use of it in commerce for some eight and one-half years.  Neither of these assertions supports its claim.

 

The mere registration of a domain name does not, in and of itself, confer upon the registrant any rights in the name for the purposes of Policy 4(a)(ii).  Respondent has the burden to show its right or legitimate interest in the Domain Name.  This necessarily implies that Respondent’s rights or legitimate interests must come from a source beyond just the registration of a domain name, since, if a Respondent could demonstrate rights in a domain name by simply registering it, the UDRP would be superfluous.  Self-serving assertions of rights or legitimate interests in the domain name fails to satisfy Policy ¶ 4(a)(ii).  See Franzus Co. v. Cotner, FA 125365 (Nat. Arb. Forum Nov. 7, 2002) (after the inactive use of the disputed domain name for five years, Respondent’s “unsupported, self-serving allegations alone are insufficient to establish that Respondent has rights or legitimate interests in respect of the domain name at issue.”).  Ways in which a Respondent can show rights or legitimate interests include but are not limited to: use or preparations to use the domain name in connection with a bona fide offering of goods or services prior to notice of any dispute (Policy ¶ 4(c)(i)); the Respondent has been commonly known by the disputed domain name (Policy ¶ 4(c)(ii)); and Respondent is making a legitimate noncommercial or fair use of the domain name (Policy ¶ 4(c)(iii)).  Respondent must submit evidence of something other than a domain name registration in order to establish rights or legitimate interests in that domain name.

 

Respondent states that prior to the time it registered the Domain Name, and even thereafter until Complainants protested its use in August 2007, it was not aware of the existence of Complainants’ ROCKRESORTS Marks.  This is not persuasive.  RockResorts’ prior registration of its marks, and the extensive degree to which these marks were known and recognized generally throughout the United States and elsewhere as identifying RockResorts’ properties and services render Respondent’s claim of unawareness not credible.  Some marks, even though registered with the USTPO, are not generally known, and a person might innocently and unwittingly register an identical or similar domain name.  In this case, however, the ROCKRESORTS Marks were sufficiently famous that it is inconceivable that Respondent could not have been aware of them when it registered the Domain Name.

 

Secondly, Respondent’s use of the name does not confer any right or legitimate interest upon it because that use is not a bona fide offering of goods or services, or a legitimate noncommercial or fair use.  Based upon the undisputed evidence presented by Complainants and supported by Annex C to the Complaint, the Panel finds that from 2001 to 2005, Respondent used the Domain Name to redirect Internet users to Respondent’s domain name <hempworldhotel.com>, which it registered in 1998.  The web pages appearing at that site between 2001 and 2005 contain advertising for an undertaking called “HempWorldHotels” which advertising includes inter alia the following: 

·        “Can you imagine a most hospitable and atmospheric place where all is made from hemp?” 

·        “A night at any of the HempWorldHotels will make this a HempWorld experience for you.”

·        “HempWorldHotels are planned in Amsterdam, Auckland, Barcelona, Costa Rica, Hawaii, Jamaica, Nepal, Paris, Santa Barbara, Sydney, Toronto, Tokyo and Vancouver.” 

·        “Win-win marketing and partnership opportunity for every producer of hemp products used and sold in the HempWorldHotels, Shops and Restaurants.”

 

Currently, the Domain Name redirects Internet users to a website located at <hempisreatblaswersse.com>, another active, commercial site which directs Internet users to commercial websites unrelated to the Complainants.  None of these websites relates or directs users to Respondent’s HempWorldHotels, but at least one of them offers vacation rentals, rental beach homes in Cape San Blas, and “luxury vacation rentals on the Gulf of Mexico’s most beautiful beaches.”  There is no direct evidence that Respondent owns <hempisreatblaswersse.com> but Respondent owns and controls the Domain Name, and the Panel finds that the use of the Domain Name to redirect Internet traffic to <hempisreatblaswersse.com> would not be made without Respondent’s consent and approval. 

 

Respondent asserts that those uses are legitimate, at least as to Complainants, because Respondent is not in competition with Complainants; it is not in the business of operating or managing hotels or travel agencies, or in making reservations for same.  Respondent claims it is only providing bona fide advertising or marketing services for its clients. 

 

That, however, is not true.  Respondent uses the Domain Name to direct Internet users to <hempisreatblaswersse.com>, which does offer competing services.  Moreover, even if Respondent were providing only advertising or marketing services for others, that would be defensible only if Respondent were using its own resources and property to do so; here it is using the Domain Name, which contains a trademark belonging to the Complainants.  Respondent is not using the Domain Name for a bona fide offering of goods or services, and is not making a legitimate noncommercial or fair use of it.    See Charles Letts & Co. v. Citipublications, FA 692150 (Nat. Arb. Forum July 17, 2006) (finding that the respondent’s use of a domain name that was confusingly similar to the complainant’s mark to display links to the complainant’s competitors did not constitute a bona fide offering of goods or services pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(c)(i), or a legitimate noncommercial or fair use pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(c)(iii)); see also Expedia, Inc. v. Compaid, FA 520654 (Nat. Arb. Forum Aug. 30, 2005) (finding that the respondent’s use of the <expediate.com> domain name to redirect Internet users to a website featuring links to travel services that competed with the complainant was not a bona fide offering of goods or services pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(c)(i) or a legitimate noncommercial or fair use pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(c)(iii)).

 

Accordingly, the Panel finds and determines that the Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the Domain Name.

 

Registration and Use in Bad Faith

 

At the time Respondent registered the Domain Name, the ROCKRESORTS Marks were sufficiently famous to give constructive notice to Respondent that its registration would violate Complainants’ rights.  See Samsonite Corp. v. Colony Holding, FA 94313, (Nat. Arb. Forum April 17, 2000) (evidence of bad faith includes actual or constructive knowledge of commonly known mark at time of registration); see also Sony Kabushiki Kaisha v. Inja, Kil, D2000-1409 (WIPO Dec. 9, 2000) (finding bad faith registration and use where it is “inconceivable that the Respondent could make any active use of the disputed domain names without creating a false impression of association with the Complainant”); see also AltaVista Co. v. GrandTotalFitness Ltd., No. 2000-0848 (WIPO  Oct. 7, 2000) (“[T]he Domain Names are so obviously connected with the Complainant that its very use by someone with no connection with the Complainant suggests opportunistic bad faith.”).  The Domain Name here is identical to the RockResorts’ ROCKRESORT trademark, and this demonstrates bad faith, per se.

 

Respondent’s bad faith is also demonstrated by its use of the Domain Name to attract, for commercial gain, Internet users to its website or other on-line location by creating a likelihood of confusion with the Complainants’ marks as to the source, sponsorship, affiliation, or endorsement of its website or location, or of a product or service on its web site or location, within the meaning of Policy ¶ 4(b)(iv).

 

Currently, Internet users seeking the <rockresort.com> web site are directed to a website located at <hempisreatblaswersse.com>, which provides links to other websites offering services, some of which compete with or are similar to Complaints’ services.  The Panel finds that this creates substantial confusion with the Complainants’ marks as to the source, sponsorship, affiliation, or endorsement of the goods and services offered at the other web sites and also constitutes a disruption of Complainant’s business within the meaning of Policy ¶ 4(b)(iii).  See Persohn v. Lim, FA 874447 (Nat. Arb. Forum Feb. 19, 2007) (finding bad faith registration and use pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(b)(iii) where a respondent used the disputed domain name to operate a commercial search engine with links to the complainant’s competitors); see also Luck's Music Library v. Stellar Artist Mgmt., FA 95650 (Nat. Arb. Forum Oct. 30, 2000) (finding that the respondent engaged in bad faith use and registration by using domain names that were identical or confusingly similar to the complainant’s mark to redirect users to a website that offered services similar to those offered by the complainant); see also Asbury Auto. Group, Inc. v. Tex. Int’l Prop. Assocs., FA 958542 (Nat. Arb. Forum May 29, 2007) (finding that the respondent’s use of the disputed domain name to advertise car dealerships that competed with the complainant’s business would likely lead to confusion among Internet users as to the sponsorship or affiliation of those competing dealerships, and was therefore evidence of bad faith registration and use pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(b)(iv)); see also AltaVista Co. v. Krotov, D2000-1091 (WIPO Oct. 25, 2000) (finding bad faith under Policy ¶ 4(b)(iv) where the respondent’s domain name resolved to a website that offered links to third-party websites that offered services similar to the complainant’s services and merely took advantage of Internet user mistakes).

 

Respondent denies that it has ever operated the Domain Name for commercial gain, which is central to a finding of bad faith based upon Policy ¶ 4(b)(iv).  Respondent also asserts that there is no evidence that <hempisreatblaswersse.com> is registered in its name, nor is there any evidence that <hempisreatblaswersse.com> is a “pay-per-click” website.  All of this notwithstanding, there is strong circumstantial evidence that Respondent’s use of the Domain Name in connection with <hempisreatblaswersse.com> is for commercial gain.

 

As was found in connection with the discussion of Respondent’s lack of right or legitimate interest in the Domain Name, the use of that name to direct Internet traffic to <hempisreatblaswersse.com> would not occur without Respondent’s affirmative consent and approval, at a minimum.  The fact that Respondent asked $29,000 and $19,000 as consideration to transfer the Domain Name to Complainants demonstrates that it is keenly aware of the monetary value of this name and would not allow it to be used in this way except for commercial gain.

 

Secondly, although Respondent apparently does not own the domain name <hempisreatblaswersse.com>, there is evidence that Respondent is closely associated with it.  Hemp links the two.  One cannot review the record in this case without being struck by the Respondent’s affinity for hemp.  Annex A to the Response is a partial list of domains owned by the Respondent.  It consists of nine pages listing one domain name on each line, from top to bottom, single spaced.  Approximately three of these pages contain names beginning with “hemp,” and “hemp” appears in numerous other domain names, these latter accounting for perhaps a full additional page of names.  The <hempworldhotel.com> website, which is owned by Respondent, offers numerous products containing or related to hemp from the “HempWorld Store,” e.g., hemp soap, hemp body care, hemp clothing, and so forth.  This strongly suggests that Respondent has a financial or operational interest in the <hempisreatblaswersse.com> website, in which, again, “hemp” is prominently featured. 

 

Thirdly, Respondent emphatically states that its does “not operate any of its domains or businesses on the internet on a pay-per-click basis . . . . Currently the domain name is not redirected to any domain with the specific economic gain of pay-per-click.”  As discussed above, Respondent consents and approves of the Domain Name being used to divert Internet traffic to <hempisreatblaswersse.com>.  The careful phrasing Respondent used to deny that the “specific economic gain” was pay-per-click as quoted above suggests that while the specific arrangement may not be pay-per-click, there is some form of commercial advantage flowing to it from the <hempisreatblaswersse.com> website. 

 

The foregoing factors are persuasive that, while specific details may not be known, Respondent’s current use of the Domain Name is in fact for commercial gain and the Panel so finds.

 

From 2001 to 2005, Respondent used the Domain Name to redirect Internet users to Respondent’s domain name <hempworldhotel.com>, which it registered in 1998.  The web pages appearing at that site between 2001 and 2005 contain advertising for an undertaking called “HempWorldHotels,” as described in detail above.  While the record contains no evidence that Respondent currently uses the Domain Name to attract users to its own hotel-related website, the fact that it did so for a period of some five years ending two years ago corroborates the evidence of Respondent’s bad faith in its current misuse of the Domain Name, as discussed above.

 

Finally, Respondent has offered to sell the Domain Name for $29,000, an amount well in excess of Respondent’s out-of-pocket costs.  This also evidences registration and use in bad faith pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(b)(i).  See Matmut v. Tweed, D2000-1183 (WIPO Nov. 27, 2000) (finding bad faith under Policy ¶ 4(b)(i) where the respondent stated in communication with the complainant that it would be ready to sell the <matmut.com> domain name registration for $10,000).

 

Accordingly, the Panel finds and determines that Respondent has registered and is using the Domain Name in bad faith.

 

DECISION

Having established all three elements required under the Policy, the Panel concludes that relief shall be GRANTED.

 

Accordingly, it is Ordered that the <rockresort.com> domain name be TRANSFERRED from Respondent to Complainant.

 

 

 

 

Honorable Charles A. Kuechenmeister (Ret.)

Dated:  November 19, 2007

 

 

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