The CEAT Limited vs. Cykon Technology Limited Domain Name Dispute: A Case of Reverse Domain Name Hijacking
- by Staff
In the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center case number D2018-2339, CEAT Limited of Mumbai, India, engaged in a domain name dispute against DNS Administrator, Cykon Technology Limited of Hong Kong, China. The contested domain name was “ceate.com,” which CEAT Limited argued was confusingly similar to its trademark “CEAT.” Registered on June 17, 2010, the domain name directed users to a parking page featuring generic links and a sales offer.
CEAT Limited, a prominent tire manufacturer in India, claimed rights to the CEAT trademark, asserting the domain name was identical and that Cykon Technology had no legitimate interest or rights in it, accusing them of bad faith registration and use. Conversely, Cykon Technology refuted these claims, arguing the domain name was a unique, invented word, part of their business practice of investing in such domain names.
Upon examination, the WIPO Panel found the domain name “ceate.com” to be confusingly similar to CEAT’s trademark but not identical. However, they concluded that CEAT Limited failed to prove Cykon Technology’s awareness of the CEAT trademark at the time of registration or that the domain was registered with the trademark in mind. The Panel deemed the domain name’s use for a parking page with unrelated links as not constituting bad faith.
In a significant turn, the Panel found CEAT Limited guilty of Reverse Domain Name Hijacking. This decision was driven by CEAT’s fabrication of evidence against Cykon Technology, suggesting bad faith use of the domain name, and the overall weakness of their complaint, considering they were represented by counsel. The Panel’s decision was rendered on January 14, 2019, with Luca Barbero, Vinod K. Agarwal, and The Hon Neil Brown Q.C. as panelists.
For more details, you can access the full decision on WIPO’s website: WIPO Domain Name Decision: D2018-2339.
In the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center case number D2018-2339, CEAT Limited of Mumbai, India, engaged in a domain name dispute against DNS Administrator, Cykon Technology Limited of Hong Kong, China. The contested domain name was “ceate.com,” which CEAT Limited argued was confusingly similar to its trademark “CEAT.” Registered on June 17, 2010, the domain…