Volkswagen and Audi take counterfeiters to court
09-05-2018
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German automaker Volkswagen has won a domain name dispute at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
WIPO’s Arbitration and Mediation Center cancelled the domain volkswagen.mom.
The complaint was filed on June 10 against respondent Zi Hao Liu.
The automobile company said the domain was confusingly similar to its own trademarks and was being used in bad faith.
Volkswagen owns trademarks for the term ‘Volkswagen’ internationally and in China.
The disputed domain name was registered on May 4 and, according to Volkswagen’s complaint, it does not link to any valid website and is not being put to practical use.
Yijun Tian, sole panellist in the dispute, ruled that the domain is confusingly similar to the Volkswagen-owned trademarks, that the respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in it, and that it is being used in bad faith.
The decision is available here.
This was first published on World IP Review.
WIPO’s Arbitration and Mediation Center, Volkswagen, trademark, Zi Hao Liu, Yijun Tian,
