Trade Media Holdings Limited v.
Skarbiec.com S.A.
Claim Number: FA0204000110810
Complainant
is Trade Media Holdings Limited,
George Town, GRAND CAYMAN ISLANDS
(“Complainant”) represented by Yang Ping
Tang. Respondent is Skarbiec.com S.A., Warsaw, POLAND
(“Respondent”).
The
domain name at issue is <globalsources.biz>,
registered with Network Solutions.
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.
Hon.
Ralph Yachnin as Panelist.
Complainant
has standing to file a Start-up Trademark Opposition Policy (“STOP”) Complaint,
as it timely filed the required Intellectual Property (IP) Claim Form with the
Registry Operator, NeuLevel. As an IP
Claimant, Complainant timely noted its intent to file a STOP Complaint against
Respondent with the Registry Operator, NeuLevel and with the National
Arbitration Forum (the “Forum”).
Complainant
submitted a Complaint to the Forum electronically on April 24, 2002; the Forum
received a hard copy of the Complaint on April 30, 2002.
On
May 1, 2002, a Notification of Complaint and Commencement of Administrative
Proceeding (the “Commencement Notification”), setting a deadline of May 21,
2002 by which Respondent could file a Response to the Complaint, was
transmitted to Respondent in compliance with paragraph 2(a) of the Rules for
the Start-up Trademark Opposition Policy (the “STOP Rules”).
Having
received no Response from Respondent, using the same contact details and
methods as were used for the Commencement Notification, the Forum transmitted
to the parties a Notification of Respondent Default.
On June 5, 2002, pursuant to STOP Rule 6(b), the Forum
appointed Hon. Ralph Yachnin
as the single Panelist.
Having
reviewed the communications records, the Administrative Panel (the “Panel”)
finds that the Forum has discharged its responsibility under Paragraph 2(a) of
the STOP Rules. Therefore, the Panel
may issue its decision based on the documents submitted and in accordance with
the STOP Policy, STOP Rules, the Forum’s STOP Supplemental Rules and any rules
and principles of law that the Panel deems applicable, without the benefit of
any Response from Respondent.
Transfer
of the domain name from Respondent to Complainant.
A.
Complainant
The
<globalsources.biz> domain name is identical to GLOBAL SOURCES, a
mark in which Complainant holds rights.
Respondent
has no rights or legitimate interests in the disputed domain name.
Respondent
registered the disputed domain name in bad faith.
B.
Respondent
Respondent
did not submit a Response in this proceeding.
Complainant holds registered trademarks
for the GLOBAL SOURCES mark in Australia (Reg. No. 866,560), Hong Kong (Reg.
No. B11250/2000), Isreal (Reg. No. 144,243), and Switzerland (Reg. No.
04867/2000). Complainant also has
pending applications for the GLOBAL SOURCES mark in the United States, Mexico,
South Africa, and Thailand, among others.
Complainant has used its GLOBAL SOURCES mark since at least September
1999 and operates a web-based business at <globalsources.com>.
Respondent registered <globalsources.biz>
on March 27, 2002 and has not established a purpose or use for the domain
name. Complainant’s investigation shows
that Respondent operates a website at <skarbiec.com> that is in the
business of providing domain name registration services.
Paragraph 15(a) of the STOP 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 the Complainant's undisputed
representations pursuant to paragraphs 5(e), 14(a) and 15(a) of the STOP Rules
and draw such inferences it considers appropriate pursuant to paragraph 14(b)
of the STOP Rules.
Paragraph
4(a) of the STOP Policy requires that the Complainant must prove each of the
following three elements to obtain an order that a domain name should be
transferred:
(1)
the domain name is identical to a trademark or service mark in which
the Complainant has rights;
and
(2) the Respondent has no rights or
legitimate interests in respect of the domain name; and
(3)
the domain name has been registered or is being used in bad faith.
Due
to the common authority of the ICANN policy governing both the Uniform Domain
Name Dispute Resolution Policy (“UDRP”) and these STOP proceedings, the Panel
will exercise its discretion to rely on relevant UDRP precedent where
applicable.
Under
the STOP proceedings, a STOP Complaint may only be filed when the domain name
in dispute is identical to a trademark or service mark for which a Complainant
has registered an Intellectual Property (IP) claim form. Therefore, every STOP proceeding necessarily
involves a disputed domain name that is identical to a trademark or service
mark in which a Complainant asserts rights.
The existence of the “.biz” generic top-level domain (gTLD) in the
disputed domain name is not a factor for purposes of determining that a
disputed domain name is not identical to the mark in which the Complainant
asserts rights.
Complainant
holds multiple registered trademarks in GLOBAL SOURCES throughout the world and
has continued to apply for trademark protections in various countries
world-wide. Complainant has also
continuously used the GLOBAL SOURCES mark in its business operations since
September 1999. Therefore, Complainant
has demonstrated its rights to and interests in the GLOBAL SOURCES mark.
Respondent’s
<globalsources.biz> contains Complainant’s entire GLOBAL SOURCES
mark. Hence, Respondent’s domain name
is identical to Complainant’s mark.
The
Panel finds that STOP Policy ¶ 4(a)(i) has been satisfied.
Complainant
has demonstrated its rights to and interests in the GLOBAL SOURCES mark. Because Respondent has not submitted a
Response in this matter, the Panel may properly presume it has no rights or
interests in the disputed domain name. See
Pavillion Agency, Inc. v. Greenhouse
Agency Ltd., D2000-1221 (WIPO Dec. 4, 2000) (finding that Respondent’s
failure to respond can be construed as an admission that they have no
legitimate interest in the domain names).
The Panel finds that STOP Policy ¶
4(a)(ii) has been satisfied.
Respondent had constructive notice of the
fact that its <globalsources.biz> domain name was identical to
Complainant’s GLOBAL SOURCES mark due to the unique STOP registration
procedure. This constructive notice
supports a finding of bad faith registration on the part of Respondent. See Gene Logic Inc. v. Bock,
FA 103042 (Nat. Arb. Forum Mar. 4, 2002) (finding that the unique nature of the
STOP Policy and the notice given to Respondent regarding existing IP Claims
identical to its chosen domain name precluded good faith registration of
<genelogic.biz> when Respondent registered it with “full knowledge that his
intended business use of this domain name was in direct conflict with a
registered trademark of a known competitor in exactly the same field of
business”); see also Samsonite
Corp. v. Colony Holding, FA 94313 (Nat. Arb. Forum Apr. 17, 2000) (evidence
of bad faith includes actual or constructive knowledge of commonly known mark
at the time of registration).
Respondent operates a website,
<skarbiec.com>, that provides domain name registration services. This evidences an intent to sell the <globalsource.biz>
domain name for profit. Therefore,
Respondent registered the domain name in bad faith under STOP Policy ¶
4(b)(i). See Euromarket Designs, Inc. v. Domain For Sale
VMI, D2000-1195 (WIPO Oct. 26, 2000) (finding “the manner in which the
Respondent chose to identify itself and its administrative and billing contacts
both conceals its identity and unmistakably conveys its intention, from the
date of the registration, to sell rather than make any use of the disputed
domain name”).
The Panel finds that STOP Policy ¶
4(a)(iii) has been satisfied.
Having established all three elements
required under the STOP Policy, the Panel concludes that relief shall be hereby
granted.
Accordingly, it is Ordered that the <globalsources.biz>
domain name be transferred from Respondent to Complainant, and that
subsequent challenges under the STOP Policy against this domain name shall
not be permitted.
Hon. Ralph Yachnin, Panelist
Justice, Supreme Court, NY (Ret.)
Dated: June 6, 2002
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