Kmart of Michigan, Inc. v. OpenWaterEnterprisesLimited
c/o Louise S
Claim Number: FA0709001082357
Complainant is Kmart of Michigan, Inc. (“Complainant”), represented by Paul
D. McGrady, of Greenberg Traurig, LLP,
REGISTRAR AND DISPUTED DOMAIN
NAME
The domain name at issue is <kmartpharmacy.com>, registered with Enom, Inc.
The undersigned certifies that he has acted independently and impartially and to the best of his knowledge has no known conflict in serving as Panelist in this proceeding.
Honorable Karl V. Fink (Ret.), as Panelist.
Complainant submitted a Complaint to the National Arbitration Forum electronically on September 27, 2007; the National Arbitration Forum received a hard copy of the Complaint on September 28, 2007.
On September 27, 2007, Enom, Inc. confirmed by e-mail to the National Arbitration Forum that the <kmartpharmacy.com> domain name is registered with Enom, Inc. and that Respondent is the current registrant of the name. Enom, Inc. has verified that Respondent is bound by the Enom, Inc. 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@kmartpharmacy.com by e-mail.
Having received no response from Respondent, the National Arbitration Forum transmitted to the parties a Notification of Respondent Default.
On November 7, 2007, pursuant to Complainant's request to have the dispute decided by a single-member Panel, the National Arbitration Forum appointed Honorable Karl V. Fink (Ret.) as Panelist.
Having reviewed the communications records, the Administrative Panel (the "Panel") finds that the National Arbitration Forum has discharged its responsibility under Paragraph 2(a) of the Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the "Rules") "to employ reasonably available means calculated to achieve actual notice to Respondent." Therefore, the Panel may issue its decision based on the documents submitted and in accordance with the ICANN Policy, ICANN Rules, the National Arbitration Forum's Supplemental Rules and any rules and principles of law that the Panel deems applicable, without the benefit of any response from Respondent.
Complainant requests that the domain name be transferred from Respondent to Complainant.
A. Complainant makes the following assertions:
1. Respondent’s <kmartpharmacy.com> domain name is confusingly similar to Complainant’s KMART mark.
2. Respondent does not have any rights or legitimate interests in the <kmartpharmacy.com> domain name.
3. Respondent registered and used the <kmartpharmacy.com> domain name in bad faith.
B. Respondent failed to submit a Response in this proceeding.
Complainant, Kmart of Michigan, Inc, has been continuously using the KMART mark since 1962 in connection with a chain of discount department stores. Since 1968, the KMART mark has also been associated with retail pharmacy services. Complainant owns a trademark registration for the KMART mark in connection with online and retail pharmacy store services with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) (Reg. No. 3,141,789 issued Sept. 12, 2006, filed Sept. 9, 2005).
Respondent’s <kmartpharmacy.com> domain name was registered on November 26, 2005 and currently resolves to a commercial search engine and various third-party links to pharmacy services in direct competition with those offered under Complainant’s mark.
Paragraph 15(a) of 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."
In view of Respondent's failure to submit a response, the Panel shall decide this administrative proceeding on the basis of Complainant's undisputed representations pursuant to paragraphs 5(e), 14(a) and 15(a) of the Rules and draw such inferences it considers appropriate pursuant to paragraph 14(b) of the Rules. The Panel is entitled to accept all reasonable allegations and inferences set forth in the Complaint as true unless the evidence is clearly contradictory. See Vertical Solutions Mgmt., Inc. v. webnet-marketing, inc., FA 95095 (Nat. Arb. Forum July 31, 2000) (holding that the respondent’s failure to respond allows all reasonable inferences of fact in the allegations of the complaint to be deemed true); see also Talk City, Inc. v. Robertson, D2000-0009 (WIPO Feb. 29, 2000) (“In the absence of a response, it is appropriate to accept as true all allegations of the Complaint.”).
Paragraph 4(a) of the Policy requires that 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 Respondent is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in which Complainant has rights; and
(2) 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.
Complainant has sufficiently established its rights through
registration with the USPTO dating back to the filing date pursuant to Policy ¶
4(a)(i). See
Respondent’s <kmartpharmacy.com> domain name
contains Complainant’s mark in its entirety and includes the generic top-level
domain (“gTLD”) “.com” and the generic term “pharmacy,” which directly
describes a service offered under Complainant’s KMART mark. It is well established that the inclusion of
a gTLD and a generic descriptive term does not distinguish a disputed domain
name. Accordingly, the Panel finds that
Respondent’s <kmartpharmacy.com> domain name is confusingly
similar to Complainant’s KMART mark. See
Rollerblade, Inc. v. McCrady, D2000-0429 (WIPO June 25, 2000)
(finding that the top level of the domain name such as “.net” or “.com” does
not affect the domain name for the purpose of determining whether it is
identical or confusingly similar); see
also Space Imaging LLC v. Brownell,
AF-0298 (eResolution Sept. 22, 2000) (finding confusing similarity where the
respondent’s domain name combines the complainant’s mark with a generic term that
has an obvious relationship to the complainant’s business).
The Panel concludes that Complainant has satisfied Policy ¶ 4(a)(i).
Under Policy ¶ 4(a)(ii),
Complainant must first establish a prima
facie case that Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in the <kmartpharmacy.com>
domain name. See VeriSign Inc. v. VeneSign
Respondent has failed to submit a response to the Complaint. Therefore, the Panel presumes that Respondent
has no rights or legitimate interests in the <kmartpharmacy.com>
domain name but will still consider the factors listed under Policy ¶ 4(c) with
all of the evidence in the record. See G.D. Searle v. Martin Mktg.,
FA 118277 (Nat. Arb. Forum Oct. 1, 2002) (“Respondent’s failure to respond
means that Respondent has not presented any circumstances that would promote
its rights or legitimate interests in the subject domain name under Policy ¶
4(a)(ii).”); see
also Pavillion Agency, Inc. v. Greenhouse Agency Ltd., D2000-1221 (WIPO
Dec. 4, 2000) (finding that the respondents’ failure to respond can be
construed as an admission that they have no legitimate interest in the domain
names).
Nowhere in the Respondent’s WHOIS information or elsewhere
in the record does it indicate that Respondent is or ever has been commonly
known by the disputed domain name.
Moreover, Respondent has not sought nor has Complainant granted
Respondent permission to use the KMART mark in any way. As such, the Panel finds that Respondent is
not commonly known by the <kmartpharmacy.com> domain name pursuant
to Policy ¶ 4(c)(ii). See
Tercent Inc. v. Lee Yi, FA 139720 (Nat. Arb. Forum Feb. 10, 2003)
(stating “nothing in Respondent’s WHOIS information implies that Respondent is
‘commonly known by’ the disputed domain name” as one factor in determining that
Policy ¶ 4(c)(ii) does not apply); see
also Compagnie de Saint Gobain v.
Com-Union Corp., D2000-0020 (WIPO Mar. 14, 2000) (finding no rights or
legitimate interest where the respondent was not commonly known by the mark and
never applied for a license or permission from the complainant to use the
trademarked name).
Further, Respondent’s <kmartpharmacy.com>
domain name contains Complainant’s KMART mark in its entirety and resolves to a
commercial search engine, advertisements, and links to third-parties that offer
pharmacy services in direct competition with those offered under Complainant’s
mark. The Panel finds this to be neither
a bona fide offering of goods or
services pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(c)(i) nor a legitimate
noncommercial or fair use pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(c)(iii). See eBay Inc. v. Hong, D2000-1633
(WIPO Jan. 18, 2001) (stating that the respondent’s use of the complainant’s
entire mark in domain names makes it difficult to infer a legitimate use); see also Ameritrade Holdings Corp. v. Polanski, FA 102715 (Nat. Arb.
Forum Jan. 11, 2002) (finding that the respondent’s use of the disputed domain
name to redirect Internet users to a financial services website, which competed
with the complainant, was not a bona fide offering of goods or
services); see also Clear Channel Commc’ns, Inc. v. Beaty
Enters., FA 135008 (Nat. Arb. Forum Jan. 2, 2003) (finding that the
respondent, as a competitor of the complainant, had no rights or legitimate
interests in a domain name that utilized the complainant’s mark for its
competing website).
The Panel concludes that Complainant has satisfied Policy ¶ 4(a)(ii).
Respondent’s <kmartpharmacy.com> domain name
resolves to a links page containing various third-party links to pharmacy
services in direct competition with those offered under Complainant’s KMART
mark. Consequently, the Panel finds that
this establishes that Respondent registered and is using the disputed domain
name in bad faith as an attempt to disrupt Complainant business pursuant to
Policy ¶ 4(b)(iii).
See Disney Enters., Inc. v. Noel, FA 198805 (Nat. Arb. Forum Nov. 11, 2003) (“Respondent
registered a domain name confusingly similar to Complainant's mark to divert
Internet users to a competitor's website. It is a reasonable inference that
Respondent's purpose of registration and use was to either disrupt or create
confusion for Complainant's business in bad faith pursuant to Policy ¶¶ 4(b)(iii) [and] (iv).”); see
also Puckett, Individually v.
Miller, D2000-0297 (WIPO June 12, 2000) (finding that the respondent has
diverted business from the complainant to a competitor’s website in violation
of Policy ¶ 4(b)(iii)).
Moreover, the Panel presumes that Complainant is financially
benefiting from the commercial search engine, advertisements, and various links
displayed on the website that resolves from disputed domain name through the
earning of click-through fees. As such,
the Panel finds this to be further evidence of Respondent’s bad faith through
the use of a confusingly similar domain name for Respondent’s commercial gain
pursuant to Policy ¶ 4 (b)(iv). See Associated Newspapers Ltd. v. Domain Manager, FA 201976 (Nat. Arb. Forum Nov. 19, 2003) (“Respondent's
prior use of the <mailonsunday.com> domain name is evidence of bad faith
pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(b)(iv) because the domain name provided links to
Complainant's competitors and Respondent presumably commercially benefited from
the misleading domain name by receiving ‘click-through-fees.’”); see also TM Acquisition Corp. v. Carroll, FA 97035 (Nat. Arb. Forum May 14,
2001) (finding bad faith where the respondent used the domain name, for
commercial gain, to intentionally attract users to a direct competitor of the
complainant).
The Panel concludes that Complainant has satisfied Policy ¶ 4(a)(iii).
Having established all three elements required under the ICANN Policy, the Panel concludes that relief shall be GRANTED.
Accordingly, it is Ordered that the <kmartpharmacy.com> domain name be TRANSFERRED from Respondent to Complainant.
Honorable Karl V. Fink (Ret.), Panelist
Dated: November 19, 2007
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