Testi S.p.A. v. Private Registrations Aktien Gesellschaft
Claim Number: FA0911001292746
Complainant is Testi
S.p.A. (“Complainant”), represented by Anne
F. Bradley, of Christie, Parker
& Hale LLP,
REGISTRAR AND DISPUTED DOMAIN
NAME
The domain name at issue is <rebeccajewelry.com>, registered with Network Solutions, Inc.
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.
Louis E. Condon as Panelist.
Complainant submitted a Complaint to the National Arbitration Forum electronically on November 3, 2009; the National Arbitration Forum received a hard copy of the Complaint on November 4, 2009.
On November 3, 2009, Network Solutions, Inc. confirmed by e-mail to the National Arbitration Forum that the <rebeccajewelry.com> domain name is registered with Network Solutions, Inc. and that Respondent is the current registrant of the name. Network Solutions, Inc. has verified that Respondent is bound by the Network Solutions, 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 November 6, 2009, a Notification of Complaint and Commencement of Administrative Proceeding (the "Commencement Notification"), setting a deadline of Novmeber 27, 2009 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@rebeccajewelry.com by e-mail.
Having received no response from Respondent, the National Arbitration Forum transmitted to the parties a Notification of Respondent Default.
On December 7, 2009, pursuant to Complainant's request to have the dispute decided by a single-member Panel, the National Arbitration Forum appointed Louis E. Condon 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 <rebeccajewelry.com> domain name is confusingly similar to Complainant’s REBECCA mark.
2. Respondent does not have any rights or legitimate interests in the <rebeccajewelry.com> domain name.
3. Respondent registered and used the <rebeccajewelry.com> domain name in bad faith.
B. Respondent failed to submit a Response in this proceeding.
Complainant, Testi S.p.A., uses the REBECCA mark in its marketing and sales of high-end fashion jewelry. Complainant owns numerous trademark registrations for the REBECCA mark around the world, including one with the European Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (“OHIM”) (Reg. No. 2,808,574 issued March 22, 2006).
Respondent registered the <rebeccajewelry.com> domain name on or after January 25, 2009. Respondent’s disputed domain name resolves to a website displaying third-party links to websites offering jewelry sales in competition with Complainant.
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.
Preliminary Issue: Relevant Date of Respondent’s Registration
The WHOIS information reflects that the disputed domain name
was created on January 24, 2002.
However, Complainant contends Respondent did not acquire the disputed
domain name until at least January 25, 2009, under a domain name proxy service
that later changed to list Respondent’s registration information on March 5,
2009. The Panel finds the relevant date
Respondent registered the disputed domain name for the purposes of the Policy
is no earlier than January 25, 2009.
See Ass’n of Junior Leagues
Int’l Inc. v. This Domain Name My Be For
Complainant has provided evidence of registration of the REBECCA mark with the OHIM (Reg. No. 2,808,574 issued March 22, 2006). The Panel finds this registration satisfies Policy ¶ 4(a)(i) and thus establishes Complainant’s rights in its REBECCA mark. See Koninklijke KPN N.V. v. Telepathy Inc., D2001-0217 (WIPO May 7, 2001) (finding that the Policy does not require that the mark be registered in the country in which the respondent operates; therefore it is sufficient that the complainant can demonstrate a mark in some jurisdiction); see also KCTS Television Inc. v. Get-on-the-Web Ltd., D2001-0154 (WIPO Apr. 20, 2001) (holding that it does not matter for the purpose of paragraph 4(a)(i) of the Policy whether the complainant’s mark is registered in a country other than that of the respondent’s place of business).
Complainant argues that Respondent’s <rebeccajewelry.com> domain name is confusingly
similar to Complainant’s REBECCA mark pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(a)(i). Respondent’s disputed domain name contains
Complainant’s mark in its entirety, adds the generic term “jewelry,” and adds
the generic top-level domain (“gTLD”) “.com.”
The Panel finds that the term “jewelry,” when added to Complainant’s
REBECCA mark in the disputed domain name, creates a confusing similarity
between Complainant’s mark and the disputed domain name because the term
“jewelry” has an obvious relationship to Complainant’s offering of high-end
jewelry. See Kohler Co. v. Curley, FA 890812 (Nat. Arb. Forum Mar. 5, 2007)
(finding confusing similarity where <kohlerbaths.com>, the disputed domain name, contained the
complainant’s mark in its entirety adding “the descriptive term ‘baths,’ which
is an obvious allusion to complainant’s business.”); see also Vance Int’l, Inc. v. Abend, FA
970871 (Nat. Arb. Forum June 8, 2007) (finding that by adding the term
“security” to the complainant’s VANCE mark, which described the complainant’s
business, the respondent “very significantly increased” the likelihood of
confusion with the complainant’s mark).
In addition, the
Panel finds that the addition of a gTLD is irrelevant in distinguishing a
disputed domain name from an established mark.
See Trip Network
Inc. v. Alviera, FA 914943 (Nat. Arb.
Forum Mar. 27, 2007) (concluding that the affixation of a gTLD to a domain name
is irrelevant to a Policy ¶ 4(a)(i) analysis); see also Reese v. Morgan, FA 917029 (Nat. Arb. Forum Apr. 5, 2007)
(finding that the mere addition of the generic top-level domain “.com” is
insufficient to differentiate a disputed domain name from a mark). Therefore, the Panel finds that Respondent’s <rebeccajewelry.com> domain name is confusingly
similar to Complainant’s REBECCA mark pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(a)(i).
The Panel finds that Policy ¶ 4(a)(i) has been satisfied.
Complainant contends that Respondent does not have any
rights or legitimate interests in the disputed domain name. Once a prima facie case has been established by Complainant, the burden then
shifts to Respondent to demonstrate its rights or legitimate interests in the
disputed domain name pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(c). The Panel finds that Complainant has
adequately established a prima facie
case in these proceedings. Since
Respondent has failed to respond to the allegations against it, the Panel may
assume that Respondent lacks any rights or legitimate interests in the disputed
domain name. See Intel Corp. v. Macare, FA
660685 (Nat. Arb. Forum Apr. 26, 2006) (finding the “complainant must first
make a prima facie case that [the] respondent lacks rights and
legitimate interests in the disputed domain names under Policy ¶ 4(a)(ii), and then the burden shifts to [the] respondent to
show it does have rights or legitimate interests.”); see also Am. Express Co.
v. Fang Suhendro, FA 129120 (Nat. Arb. Forum Dec. 30, 2002) (“[B]ased on
Respondent's failure to respond, it is presumed that Respondent lacks all
rights and legitimate interests in the disputed domain name.”).
Complainant asserts that Respondent is neither commonly
known by the disputed domain name, nor licensed to register a domain name using
the REBECCA mark. Respondent’s WHOIS
information identifies the registrant as “Private Registrations Aktien
Gesellschaft” and therefore lacks any defining characteristics relating it to
the disputed domain name. The Panel
finds that without affirmative evidence Respondent is commonly known by the
disputed domain name, Respondent lacks all rights and legitimate
interests in the disputed domain name pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(c)(ii). See Braun
Corp. v. Loney, FA 699652 (Nat. Arb. Forum July 7, 2006) (concluding
that the respondent was not commonly known by the disputed domain names where
the WHOIS information, as well as all other information in the record, gave no
indication that the respondent was commonly known by the disputed domain names,
and the complainant had not authorized the respondent to register a domain name
containing its registered mark); see also M. Shanken Commc’ns v.
WORLDTRAVELERSONLINE.COM, FA
740335 (Nat. Arb. Forum Aug. 3, 2006) (finding that the respondent was not
commonly known by the <cigaraficionada.com> domain name under Policy ¶
4(c)(ii) based on the WHOIS information and other
evidence in the record).
Respondent’s disputed
domain name resolves to a website featuring advertisements and links relating
to Complainant’s competitors in the jewelry industry. The Panel may infer
that Respondent profits through the generation of click-through fees from the
links to Complainant’s competitors. Therefore, the Panel finds that
Respondent’s use of the disputed domain name is not in connection with a bona
fide offering of goods or services under Policy ¶ 4(c)(i)
or a legitimate noncommercial or fair use of the disputed domain name under Policy
¶ 4(c)(iii). See 24 Hour Fitness USA, Inc. v. 24HourNames.com-Quality
Domains For
The Panel finds that Policy ¶ 4(a)(ii) has been satisfied.
Complainant contends that Respondent is using the disputed
domain name to divert Internet customers seeking Complainant’s website to the competitive
websites that resolve from the disputed domain name, through the confusion
caused by the similarity between the REBECCA mark and the disputed domain
name. The Panel finds that Respondent’s
use of the disputed
domain name disrupts Complainant’s business, and is evidence of
registration and use in bad faith pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(b)(iii).
The Panel infers that Respondent receives click-through fees from the use of the aforementioned hyperlinks. Respondent is attempting to profit by creating a likelihood of confusion as to Complainant’s affiliation with the disputed domain name and the resolving website. Therefore, the Panel finds that Respondent’s use of the disputed domain name constitutes bad faith registration and use under Policy ¶ 4(b)(iv). See Zee TV USA, Inc. v. Siddiqi, FA 721969 (Nat. Arb. Forum July 18, 2006) (finding that the respondent engaged in bad faith registration and use by using a domain name that was confusingly similar to the complainant’s mark to offer links to third-party websites that offered services similar to those offered by the complainant); see also Univ. of Houston Sys. v. Salvia Corp., FA 637920 (Nat. Arb. Forum Mar. 21, 2006) (“Respondent is using the disputed domain name to operate a website which features links to competing and non-competing commercial websites from which Respondent presumably receives referral fees. Such use for Respondent’s own commercial gain is evidence of bad faith registration and use pursuant to Policy ¶ 4(b)(iv).”).
The Panel finds that Policy ¶ 4(a)(iii) has been satisfied.
Complainant having established all three elements required under the ICANN Policy, the Panel concludes that relief should be GRANTED.
Accordingly, it is Ordered that the <rebeccajewelry.com> domain name be TRANSFERRED from Respondent to Complainant.
Louis E. Condon, Panelist
Dated: December 21, 2009
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