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Press
Release
For
Immediate Release:
February 12, 2001
Volkswagen
Recovers Full Rights To Infringing Domain Name In Time For
Launch
Rochester,
N.Y.—In under 60 days and with no outside legal help, IP Protector
successfully recovered the Internet domain, www.bayareavw.com
from a cyber-squatter, for Volkswagen of America, Inc., just
in time for a marketing launch of the new Bay Area Volkswagen
Dealers' web site.
“We
are proud to have provided this tremendous value to VW,” says
Stephen J. Arpaia, Esq., President and Co-founder IP Protector.
“As our client, VW knows that for a flat fee, we enforce VW's
intellectual property rights on the Internet.
VW knows that we will Locate
potential infringements of their intellectual property rights.
We will Alert them.
And we will Warn
the offender and take all the necessary steps to stop the
infringements. That’s
what we call enforcing the L.A.W. on the Internet, and it
gets the kind of quick, cost-effective results VW saw here.”
On
behalf on Volkswagen, IP Protector submitted a complaint to
the National Arbitration Forum on October 2, 2000. The complaint
stated that Site Design Online of San Francisco, CA had registered
the domain name bayareavw.com and that this domain incorporates
a registered mark and was registered in “bad faith.”
Site Design Online registered the domain through Network
Solutions and all parties who register domains through Network
Solution sign an agreement to have domain name disputes resolved
by third parties in accordance with the International Association
for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).
IP
Protector proceeded to offer proof that all three necessary
elements of an ICANN Uniform Domain Name Dispute Policy existed.
The elements are:
1.
The domain name in question must be identical or
confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in which
the Complainant (Volkswagen) has rights.
2.
The Respondent (Site Design Online) has no rights
or legitimate interests in respect to the domain name.
3.
The domain name has been registered in bad faith.
The
Arbitrator in this case was James P. Buchele who found that
all three elements had been proven by IP Protector and Volkswagen
of America and he ordered that the domain be transferred by
Site Design Online to Volkswagen of America.
“Volkswagen
needed this domain. It was their first choice for their own
marketing efforts and they had a right to it. We utilized
our process to deliver results fast. And IP Protector’s flat-rate
fee structure means we can show our clients the value of our
process up front. They can feel free to ask questions, learn
more about their rights and their options, without running
up the usual legal fees. And as one can see in the case of
Volkswagen and the bayareavw.com domain, our process is efficient
and it works. ”
The
domain name is now used by Bay Area Volkswagen Dealers, and
includes all the information a purchaser needs, including
a dealer directory to find a Bay Area Volkswagen Dealer.
In addition, the Inventory Search can be used
to view the selection of New or Pre-owned Volkswagens.
Other sections are devoted to specific vehicle facts and other information
ranging from vehicle financing to requesting a brochure to
viewing Volkswagen commercials and music.
You can also check out the Community page for local Volkswagen activities.
IP
Protector is headquartered in Rochester, N.Y. but their focus
is truly global. IP
Protector has both the technical and legal expertise required
to locate and stop Intellectual Property rights infringement
at its source. IP
Protector was formed to offer clients of all sizes a cost-effective,
single-source solution for protecting their valuable intellectual
property assets on the Internet.
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Copyright
© 2000 IP Protector Inc.. All Rights Reserved. IP Protector,
Your Eyes on the Internet, L.A.W., IP Status Report, IP L.A.W.
Enforcement Form, R.I.P.S. IP Registry, IP Shield, and IP
Guard are all trademarks of IP Protector Inc.
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