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ARTICLE · 21 SEPTEMBER 2016

Clarifications On Use Of Trademark As Domain Name By A Third Party

Van Bael & Bellis
Van Bael & Bellis
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Van Bael & Bellis

Van Bael & Bellis

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On 30 March 2016, the President of the Commercial Court of Antwerp (the "President") gave its ruling in a dispute relating to the use of protected trademarks as a domain name by a third party.

BelgiumIntellectual Property
Thibaut D'Hulst
Thibaut D'Hulst
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On 30 March 2016, the President of the Commercial Court of Antwerp (the "President") gave its ruling in a dispute relating to the use of protected trademarks as a domain name by a third party.

Vaillant GmbH is a producer of heating devices and holds the rights to the EU trademark Vaillant as well as the Benelux trademark Bulex.

Eco-Star, an authorized distributor of Vaillant, had registered the domain names vaillantshop.be, vaillant-shop.be, bulexshop.be and bulex-shop.be in order to direct potential customers to its own website and create a bigger market reach. Vaillant filed a claim against Eco-Star for infringement of its trademarks.

Article XII.22 of the Code of Economic Law (Wetboek Economisch Recht/ Code de Droit Economique) prohibits the registration of any domain name to which the registrar has no right or legitimate claim when this domain name is identical to a third party's trademark so that it creates confusion and when the purpose of such

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