Trademark issues

[DavidH]

I help raise funds for a British charity, which uses the domain name *****.org.uk.

I have now purchased the *****.com name which I am using to point to the website of my local branch of the charity.

I understand, since obtaining the name, that ***** is a registered trademark.

The email address will only be used in connection with our branch's fundraising efforts for the charity, and I intend to make reference in the signature file to the official .org.uk website address for the charity. The sig file will also make it clear that *****.com is being used by the local branch of the charity.

I do not intend to sell the name and obtained it as it is much shorter than the generic name of our local branch website.

What potential problems, if any, do I face using the *****.com name and are there any further steps I should take?

Many thank in advance for any comments / advice.

DavidH

[dtobias]

Well, you *could* wind up on my Domain Hall of Shame page for using a .com domain for a noncommercial organization, but that doesn't carry the same clout as a lawsuit or UDRP...

http://domains.dan.info/hall/shame.html

[Drewbert]

The problem with your argument, Dan is that many people type ".com" out of habit.

And a non-profit registering the .org only could well find themselves in the embarrassing predicament of some low life registering the .com, then pointing it towards porn and trying to extract a ransom from the non-profit for the name.

I know it's not how the domain system should work "in theory", but I always advise non-profits to operate from the .org space, BUT to also register the .com and redirect it to the .org.

And David, if you're using the .com for the charity and NOTHING ELSE, and not producing content that competes with the TM owner, you SHOULD be 100% safe.

Notwithstanding the screwy way the UDRP is sometimes interpreted.

[DavidH]

Any views, please?

DavidH

[DavidH]

Apologies for the last post - my computer had not refreshed the page and I did not see the replies first.

Many thanks for your comments - if anyone else would like to add anything, please join in.

DavidH

[pljones]

You might want to put up a disclaimer stating that the site is for use in connection with fundraising activities on behalf of the local branch of the charity.

[DavidH]

Thanks for all your comments.

I have contacted the regional office of the charity and explained what I am doing and asked them to confirm they have no problems with it.

We shall see how they reply!

In the meantime I am redirecting wrongly addressed emails (many people are not aware that British charities have to use the .org.uk extension and not the .com version).

With the .com name now pointing to our branch website, the number of visitors to our site has gone up tenfold in just a couple of days! Whether that will result in raising any extra money remains to be seen!

DavidH

[DomainPairs]

Dan,

What a shame that you use Mensa so much in your article. The myopic purist approach so often adopted by members is one reason that I have lapsed at least 5 times. As the late Victor Serebriakof used to say "just because your intelligent, it doesn't mean you can't be stupid".

So to the domain bits.

Sub-domains are one possible structure for web presence, but other alternatives should be considered. Multiple domains on different IPs enhance link pop. They also prevent other people reg'ing the domain. You also must consider that surfers may not notice the dot in a third level domain and end up on the wrong site.

Using country specific domains may not be a good idea. Many of the registries are flakey and a waste of time. It can also mean that you have to use multiple registrars, or pay retail prices.

.com hasn't been the commercial TLD for a long time. That's why they introduced .biz

[dtobias]

Personally, I regard those who refuse to see anything in the domain name system beyond "www.[Insert Silly Slogan Here].com" as the myopic ones... use of appropriate TLDs and subdomain structure opens up lots of possibilities that people refuse to see through their dot-com blinders.

[jberryhill]

To save time in my legal practice, I send clients to read Dan's site when they have questions about the proper care and feeding of domain names.

But, I gotta say, Dan Tobias is probably the only guy I know who keeps gloves in the glove compartment of his car. Gloves are the only thing he will put in the glove compartment, and he has disdain for anyone who uses the glove compartment for anything but gloves.

[DNS Kidd]

Dan is the modern day Don Quixote of domain names, tilting at windmills of mis-registered names.

Give it up Dan, this has become a non-issue from about 1990 on.

If you have an important name, reg all iterations. It protects the value added when the site is developed.