The Green Bay Packers, Inc. of Green Bay, Wisconsin, filed a UDRP against the domain TotalPackers.com.
Registered since 2008, the domain and associated web site provides news and information related to the popular NFL team.
The domain TotalPackers.com commands more than 1 million visits per year.
According to the UDRP:
“Complainant’s team is one of the oldest teams in the NFL, having won 13 league championships, more than any other NFL team. The Packers are featured on national television throughout the pre-season, the regular season, and frequently in the post-season. Complainant engages in widespread marketing campaigns to continue to maintain and grow the name and brand for Green Bay Packers.”
The NFL has become a multi-billion dollar franchise, and many teams are becoming aggressively defensive of their trademarks; in the case of the Greenbay Packers, the use of their marks goes back to 1921.
“Complainant is the owner of the PACKERS trademark and several other PACKERS-formative marks, including: (i) PACKERS, registration no. 1100375, registered on August 22, 1978, with first use in commerce dating from January 1921; and (ii) GREEN BAY PACKERS, registration no. 1810704, registered on December 14, 1993, with first use in commerce dating from September 1963. The PACKERS mark is well-known and has developed strong reputation and goodwill among Packers’ fans and the general population in the United States, where both parties are located. Complainant operates its official website for the Packers using the domain name <packers.com>.”
In the end, the UDRP against the domain TotalPackers.com was denied, as the three WIPO panelists found the Complainant failed to establish all three clauses necessary to claim it.
For the full text of the UDRP, click here.
Edit: A previous version of the article erroneously stated that the UDRP was granted. We regret the error, and promise to consume more coffee and proof-read articles better.
