Virgin.Yachts : domain sank via a UDRP decision.
It seems that Virgin Enterprises Limited of London, United Kingdom, seeks exclusive rights to the term “VIRGIN.”
A UDRP against the domain Virgin.Yachts ended with a loss for the Respondent, Virgin Yachts LLC of Dania Beach, Florida.
The company registered the domain in 2016 and has been using it as a redirect to Virgin-Yachts.com, their primary web site, for the following services:
“With our headquarters in South Florida at Dania Cut Superyacht Repair, we can offer in-water painting to vessels up to 88 metres. When a long yard period isn’t an option, we’ll send a team to your location to complete many of the services we offer. Our ability to brush apply paint allows us the flexibility to complete large projects in stages at locations where spray application would not be permitted. We have access to many of the shipyards and Marinas in Fort Lauderdale, Miami and Palm Beach and we offer many of our services worldwide!”
According to the UDRP, the Complainant got in touch with the Respondent at an earlier time, for alleged trademark infringement issues:
“On September 5, 2014, the Complainant contacted the Respondent regarding a dispute over the Respondent’s use of the Complainant’s registered trademark VIRGIN. On June 23, 2015, about one year prior to the Respondent’s registration of the disputed domain name <virgin.yachts>, the Complainant publicly announced the launch of the Virgin Cruises cruise line in Miami, Florida. Recently, Virgin Cruises was renamed Virgin Voyages. Virgin Voyages is currently building luxury ships and will offer vacation cruise travel services to thousands of customers.”
Virgin Enterprises filed and won a UDRP against another “virgin” domain, VirginReality.com. Do they seem to be entitled to this generic term world-wide?
Initially, the UDRP included two additional domains, presumably Virgin-Yachts.com and VirginYachtsLLC.com. These domains were removed on the request of the Complainant before decision was rendered.
Johan Sjöbeck, sole panelist at the WIPO ordered the domain Virgin.Yachts to be transferred to the Complainant; read the full UDRP text.
