“188” domains lost in UDRP.
In February of this year, a group of numeric domains beginning with the number “188” was lost via UDRP.
The Complainant claimed rights to the number “188” – the sequence is considered lucky by the Chinese.
At the time, the decision was seen as a warning to other owners of domains that begin with the same number.
The new set of disputed domain names consists of 188009.com, 1881001.com, 1882002.com, 1883003.com, 1884004.com, 1885005.com, 1886006.com, 1887007.com, 1888008.com and 1889009.com.
The WIPO panelist found the Complainant to have rights in these domains:
“The Panel finds that Complainant has rights in the 188 marks acquired through registration. The 188 marks have been registered globally, including the aforementioned trademarks in the European Union and in Hong Kong. Complainant has a significant global customer base. The majority of customers are based in Asia, where the 188 brand and trademarks are recognized.”
Just like in the previous case, there was no response by the Chinese respondent, who points the domains to content related to gambling or betting. The domains were thus ordered to be transferred to the Complainant.
For the full text of the UDRP click here.
