One Avvo user – the online place to seek professional “free advice” on legal matters – is clearly in need of education on domain and trademark matters.
The question asked was:
” If I Trademark a Website Domain that is currently owned can I legally have the owner forfeit the rights of ownership to me?”
Where do we begin.
First of all, what the heck is a Website Domain, and how the heck does one trademark one?
The user expands on their ignorance even more:
“I currently don’t have the Trademark or Copyright for it until I know this legal action can be taken. I have asked for permission to purchase this website but the owner is asking for a substantial amount that im not willing to pay. The website is not in use and has no purpose, the owner just buys and sells Website Domains for profit.”
A total of four attorneys responded to that person’s question, with one of them not sugar-coating it at all:
“Do a web search on “reverse domain name hijacking,” and carefully consider the results. In case you still wish to proceed with your dubious scheme, definitely, retain an attorney to counsel you further. “
It’s remarkable that at this time and age people have no knowledge of what constitutes domain ownership rights, and that reselling your property is a perfectly legitimate practice.
This post is 100% true!
I don’t think he put across his argument in the best way, but I think it is a idea that only a domainer could think of. A lot of good domains have been taken, and there is a lot of pigeon shit, especially after the dot. So…naturally a domainer would try to work out other ways to make money.
I think the good times of quick selling, high-flying domaining is coming to an end as can be seen by the exit of even the most popular domainers like Rick Latona & Toby Clements who has discontinued his newsletter and owes people lots of money.
I have heard on another blog how the TRAFFIC Vancouver conference was offering people 20 cents in the dollar for domain sales and together with his recent-non payments it would make a great story about the rise and fall of toby clements which I hope a well-informed blogger like yourself would cover in a future article.
Worth noting we ponce on them when they don’t ask and then reg buyapplecomputers so i think one way to look at it is that they did actually ask and hopefully learn something, experience is a wonderful teacher
At last I see some Avvo user who is badly in need of a legal advice. This is not commonly seen of found.