Trademark Owners Beware: Domain Name Registration May Be Justified By Previous Distribution Relationship

• The complainant, which owns several EMBRYOLISSE marks, sought the transfer of 'embryolisseusa.com' from a previous distributor under the UDRP
• The panel held that, since the holding of the domain name was a use of the complainant's trademark, the respondent was deprived of any right to do so after the termination of the distribution relationship
• However, the panel believed that the domain name was registered mainly for increasing the sales of the complainant's products

In a recent decision under the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) before the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), a panel has denied the transfer of a domain name due to the lack of evidence supporting its registration in bad faith by the respondent, a previous distributor of the complainant's products.