Autodisk.com lost in a UDRP.
Autodesk Software somehow managed to grab the domain Autodisk.com in a UDRP at the WIPO.
Registered in 2000, the domain Autodisk.com was parked with a zero click lander, thus producing ad results related to the software maker giant.
This was most likely the issue, as the trademark is AUTODESK and not AUTODISK:
“Complainant has produced evidence that the disputed domain name resolves to generic PPC website at “www.autodisk.com” which, in turn, redirects Internet users to a variety of third-party websites connecting, inter alia, to products competing with those of Complainant on the software market. “
The Complainant referred to the distinct word “DISK” as a “misspelling” of its trademark:
“Complainant submits that the disputed domain name is confusingly similar to Complainant’s AUTODESK trademark as it consists only of a very minor misspelling thereof, that is due to the substitution of the letter “e” for the letter “i”.”
The South Korean registrant of the domain filed no response, thus losing the benefit of disputing the Complainant’s rather thin arguments.
Stephanie G. Hartung, sole panelist, ordered the domain Autodisk.com to be transferred to the Complainant, Autodesk, Inc. of San Rafael, California.
For the full text of the UDRP decision, click here.
