Is It Wise to Buy Domains with Registered Trademarks? Looking for Legal and Valuation Advice

[sudhakardasari]

Hi all,

I’m thinking about bidding on a domain in an auction. Right now, the bid is around $XXX and there are about 1 days left. The problem is that the main 2word in the domain is actually a registered trademark.

Can anyone tell me if it’s a good idea to buy domains that have registered trademarks? I know you can use them for business, but is it legal to buy them just to flip (resell) later?

Also, what’s the best domain appraisal tool to check the value of such domains?

Thanks for any advice!

 

[accurate]

No!

Absolutely not.

See what Wordpress Foundation does if you use "Wordpress" in a domain name.

 

[sudhakardasari]

Thank you for sharing the update

 

[nicenicnicenic is verified member.]

Hi, sudhakardasari

Domains tied to trademarks can get tricky. Safer to invest in clean, brandable names.

 

[clasione]

My recommendation is to steer clear of TM domains.

 

[NameSiloNameSilo is verified member.]

You need to be able to defend in court and UDRP that the registration was not to sell the domain to the trademark holder but the string is generic and can be used for many other purpose also (see the case of booking.com) It is an uphill battle, it is not worth the hassle.

 

[NameKnow.com]

your post proves you're trying to buy the domain to resell to the trademark holder. This is enough evidence for a successful UDRP request against you.

 

[NameSiloNameSilo is verified member.]

your post proves you're trying to buy the domain to resell to the trademark holder. This is enough evidence for a successful UDRP request against you.

question is the string itself, just look up the nissan dot com case, if the string is generic enough you may be able to protect your case during UDRP, but getting dictionary word domains is a better long term game (just like those we publish at www.catch.club)

 

[radndradnd is verified member.]

It's risky and not a good idea to buy domains that are registered trademarks, especially with resale in mind, that can count as bad faith and lead to losing the domain through a UDRP complaint.

For appraisal on domains without trademark issues, Saw.com's domain appraisal tool is worth checking, it's based on real comparable sales data.

 

[ExpiredAuctions]

It is wise to avoid if at all possible just because companies will file UDRP even without a trademark.

If you know about a trademark (intent) before owning the domain it will often times favor the company filing the UDRP, even though the business of domain selling does not conflict with most trademark uses. No one is going to get confused when shopping for shoes and accidentally purchase a domain....

Now, when you are dealing with super premium, single word .com domains then you will no doubt be dealing with hundreds potentially of registered trademark uses for that "word" (i.e. Apple, Monkey, Travel, etc.). That's why it's crucial that the domain be a generic word (not specific to a brand or company).

Also important is that the trademarks not be related to computers, media, advertising, etc. which could potentially run into issues because domain name business is an online, computer and advertising related venture.

Lastly, running ads on your parked domain pages many times will quality as trademark infringement especially if the ads are related to the trademark uses or mark. There are countless cases of domainers losing their domains because of this.