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ARTICLE · 16 JANUARY 2001

Domain Names

United KingdomMedia, Telecoms, IT, Entertainment
Jeremy Dickerson
Jeremy Dickerson

Since 1 December 1999 the World Intellectual Property Organisation ("WIPO") has administered the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers ("ICANN") domain name dispute resolution policy, Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy ("UDRP"). This is a procedure designed to resolve disputes over rights to domain names speedily. Numerous cases have already been registered with WIPO and many have been resolved.

Recent WIPO decisions show that a party may invoke the UDRP even without a registered trademark. The novelist Jeanette Winterson succeeded in her claim to have the domain names of jeanettewinterson.com, jeanettewinterson.net and jeanettewinterson.org transferred to her. Miss Winterson relied on her common law rights rather than a registered trademark. The actress Julia Roberts also successfully secured the transfer of juliaroberts.com.

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