Selling a domain name to a multi-national company

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Hekktor

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#240522 12-Sep-2018 09:08

Hi Team,

Last year I bought a .co.nz domain relating to an overseas company who has quite big presence in UK, US and Australia assuming they may make their way here to NZ. A few months back I received an email from there CTO asking me to call him asap which I did not do on a solicitors advise. So I never got back to him and not heard from him again since.

I have already had some legal advise on this and I am willing to sell it to them or anyone else for that matter. It's not trade marked name in NZ or anything, although I do have a website in a related industry as this company so it might be seen as trying to block them from entering the market under their brand name which I am not trying to do as I will sell it, but I would like to make some money from it too.

Anyone have experience in doing this? Could they simply turn around and try and take it from me via a legal path? Should I consider selling it to a Third party?

Really interested in your thoughts....

Cheers.

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#2088028 12-Sep-2018 09:24

Last year I bought a .co.nz domain relating to an overseas company....

.....I am not trying to do as I will sell it, but I would like to make some money from it too.

Be vary careful, you are close to prima-facie admitting that you are cyber squatting

Could they simply turn around and try and take it from me via a legal path?

Yes, there is a functioning process under the NZ DNC to resolve such issues,

https://www.dnc.org.nz/decisions

amanzi

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#2088048 12-Sep-2018 09:44

Hekktor: Last year I bought a .co.nz domain relating to an overseas company who has quite big presence in UK, US and Australia assuming they may make their way here to NZ.

Looks like you are a cybersquatter.

Hekktor: A few months back I received an email from there CTO asking me to call him asap which I did not do on a solicitors advise.

So the company who's name you're cybersquatting contacts you and your first action is to speak to your lawyer? You obviously realise you're cybersquatting.

Hekktor: ...I will sell it, but I would like to make some money from it too.

Yep, you're fully aware that you're cybersquatting.

Hekktor: Anyone have experience in doing this? Could they simply turn around and try and take it from me via a legal path? Should I consider selling it to a Third party?

Your best option is to contact the CTO and hope you can resolve this amicably. Your best case scenario is that the CTO offers you some compensation for the domain but you should know that they are under no obligation to do so.

Then perhaps you should focus your energy on something more productive.

xpd

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#2088049 12-Sep-2018 09:45

Its interesting looking through that link at the number of large multinationals trying to claim .co.nz/.nz domains - one there for Lenovo.co.nz. Lenovo failed to obtain it. Why ? Because it was registered before Lenovo existed.

If you registered a name before the multinational existed, then too bad for them. But your post above does hint at squatting, therefore they'd have a good chance of taking it from you.

My domain name is linked to camping gear, cookware and even some triathlon thing, yet if any of them came after me to obtain it under the "thats our name" argument, they'd have pretty much 0 chance of getting it off me as I have evidence going back to probably 1993 that there was in no way any intention of my using it as competition against them or squatting on it when i registered it in 2002 (I think). (Its been my handle since my Amiga days)

XPD / Gavin

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Hekktor

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#2088147 12-Sep-2018 11:32

Thanks for all the honest feed back. If anything this is really interesting information for me as and I am new to domain name buying/selling.

What I find interesting (and am hoping this may be a point of difference like @xpd), is that I have registered the domain and the brand name is not registered in NZ or on WIPO which I hope means that I have registered it fairly as it is not under trademark in NZ or WIPO?

Maybe I am getting more into a Trade Mark discussion now.. but Based on your Lenovo.co.nz example would that mean I am in the same boat?

freitasm

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#2088151 12-Sep-2018 11:39

Lenovo was registered before the company existed. There was no conflict there.

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Hekktor

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#2089150 12-Sep-2018 11:52

freitasm:

Lenovo was registered before the company existed. There was no conflict there.

Ok so in this case the company has existed since around 2010 overseas, no presence in NZ, no TM or registered Company here, however I have seen they have now incorporated a NZ company since the new 2018 financial year. I have owned the domain since mid 2017 so that sounds like they would have grounds to take it?

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#2089174 12-Sep-2018 12:00

Yes.

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#2089177 12-Sep-2018 12:00

Hekktor: I have owned the domain since mid 2017 so that sounds like they would have grounds to take it?

If that company has a lawyer that believes they have grounds to take it, then they will try. Are you willing and able to take up the fight? Sounds like you knowingly cybersquatted to try make some money - as per your first post - and so in my opinion I believe you should respond to the CTO and attempt to sort it out amicably and hope they offer you some compensation for the money you spent registering their name.

Hekktor

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#2089188 12-Sep-2018 12:06

Thanks very much for the help. Really appreciate it, I have learn't a lot about this topic today :)

Hekktor

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#2089228 12-Sep-2018 12:46

wellygary:

Yes, there is a functioning process under the NZ DNC to resolve such issues,

https://www.dnc.org.nz/decisions

Here is and interesting one... Similar to my case... and the domain name was not transfered

https://www.dnc.org.nz/content/932.pdf

14 September 1999 – the DOMINO’S word trade mark 292894 is
registered (Domino’s IP);
(b) 7 March 2001 – the Domain Name is registered (the Respondent);
(c) 5 February 2002 – the dominospizza.net.nz and dominospizza.org.nz
domain names are registered (Domino’s IP);
(d) 26 March 2002 – the dominospizza.co.nz domain name is registered
(Domino’s IP);
7
(e) 12 February 2003 – Domino’s Pizza New Zealand Limited is
incorporated;
(f) July 2003 – the first Domino’s Pizza New Zealand store is opened

However this would be the deciding factor which it seems I may be up against.

5. Evidence of Unfair Registration

5.1. A non-exhaustive list of factors which may be evidence that the Domain Name is an Unfair Registration is set out in paragraphs 5.1.1 - 5.1.5:

5.1.1. Circumstances indicating that the Respondent has registered or otherwise acquired the Domain Name primarily:
- (a) for the purposes of selling, renting or otherwise transferring the Domain Name to the Complainant or to a competitor of the Complainant, for valuable consideration in excess of the Respondent's documented out-of-pocket costs directly associated with acquiring or using the Domain Name;
  
  (b) as a blocking registration against a name or mark in which the Complainant has Rights; or
  
  (c) for the purpose of unfairly disrupting the business of the Complainant; or
5.1.2. Circumstances demonstrating that the Respondent is using the Domain Name in a way which is likely to confuse, mislead or deceive people or businesses into believing that the Domain Name is registered to, operated or authorised by, or otherwise connected with the Complainant;

5.1.3. The Complainant can demonstrate that the Respondent is engaged in a pattern of registrations where the Respondent is the Registrant of domain names (under .nz or otherwise) which correspond to well known names or trade marks in which the Respondent has no apparent rights, and the Domain Name is part of that pattern;

5.1.4. The Complainant can demonstrate that the Respondent has knowingly given false contact details to a Registrar and/or to the DNCL; or

5.1.5. The Domain Name was registered arising out of a relationship between the Complainant and the Respondent, and the circumstances indicate that it was intended by both the Complainant and the Respondent that the Complainant would be entered in the Register as the Registrant of the Domain Name;

5.2. Failure on the Respondent's part to use the Domain Name for the purposes of e-mail or a web-site is not in itself evidence that the Domain Name is an Unfair Registration.

5.3. There shall be a presumption of Unfair Registration if the Complainant proves that the Respondent has been found to have made an Unfair Registration in three (3) or more Dispute Resolution Service cases in the two (2) years before the Complaint was filed. This presumption can be rebutted (see paragraph 6.3).

5.4. In making their Decision, the Expert shall not take into account any evidence of acts or omissions amounting to unfair registration or use which occurred more than three (3) years before the date of the Complaint.

freitasm

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#2089265 12-Sep-2018 13:24

The case is simple: the CTO approached you so they want a friendly agreement. You come as the squatter in this story. If they really want it then you have to be prepared to defend the domain registration - which may cost you money. So why not do the right thing and sell it for the price of the registration? This is not a money making enterprise - or is it?

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Hekktor

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#2089279 12-Sep-2018 13:52

No, not intentionally and the end of the day I am not worried about loosing the registration cost as if it fairly minimal really. However if could walk away with a bit more in my bank then, who wouldn't take that chance? I bought the domain along with a number of other domains that i was considering for a few projects I have on the go so I am now looking at selling off the ones I no longer need.

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#2089280 12-Sep-2018 13:55

I own a domain which is kiwico.co.nz

I have someone email in asking to buy it once every couple months. Generally just try and suggest I am not using it due to no website so I added a blogspot to it and no more of that arm twisting, But they offer $500 each time.

I registered the domain in the nick of time after someone had let it lapse, was literally with in the same day. The person asking to buy it is of no relation to the person who let it lapse. I made the name up with a mate at tech cause we were going to open a company. Never knew of any KiwiCo prior.

In this case if X who owned KiwiCo from ages ago till 2013 when I registered it have a case if they raised it against me? After all they did let it lapse.

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#2089281 12-Sep-2018 13:59

Is this the only domain you have purchased like this? Or have you purchased other ones that you are also sitting on. If this is the only one, I am wondering why you would have purchased it, as it is a bit of a risky thing to do IMO.

freitasm

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#2089351 12-Sep-2018 14:57

Removed a couple of replies that shouldn't be here.

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