BBB.cc UDRP
The Chinese registrant of BBB.cc sought to get $30,000 dollars from BBB Cycling, a Dutch company.
The latter, filed a UDRP in order to get the domain:
“The Complainant is a worldwide leader in selling high quality cycling products, with more than 1,500 products across more than 40 different product categories sold in 48 countries. The Complainant has used the BBB trademark in commerce for almost 20 years. The Complainant asserts and the Respondent has not contested that it has invested significantly in marketing and promoting its BBB trademark. The Complainant has supplied evidence of its promotional brochures dating back as early as 1998, wherein it prominently advertised its BBB trademark.”
A three letter domain such as BBB.cc with its myriad acronyms, can be a hard case for a trademark holder – unless they can prove that the domain was registered and used in bad faith.
Other than its statement of owning the BBB mark, the Complainant made an interesting statement regarding the significance of the dot .CC ccTLD as it pertains to its brand:
“Given that the Complainant’s trademarks have acquired a reputation over the years and the fact that the Complainant is a market leader in cycling products, it can be assumed that the average Internet user is being misled by seeing the disputed domain name <bbb.cc> and will think that the disputed domain name is affiliated with the Complainant. This is particularly so because the Top-Level Domain (“TLD”) “.cc” may be understood as an abbreviation for “cycling”. A possible negative experience with the disputed domain name could cause a negative experience with the Complainant. The Respondent’s mere parking of the disputed domain name prevents the Complainant from registering its BBB trademark on the “.cc” TLD. Finally, the asking price of over EUR 30,000 is obviously in excess of the Respondent’s costs in registering the disputed domain name and is further indication of registration and use in bad faith.”
Kimberley Chen Nobles, sole panelist with the WIPO in this case, stated that BBB.cc should be transferred to the Complainant; read the full text of the decision.
