Farm equipment-to-software group Mahindra & Mahindra has won a cybersquatting case at the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) against a US-based firm, which had tried to block domain name, 'mahindralogistics.Com'.
M&M had challenged registering of the domain name by Portfolio Brains LLC of the US, at the World Intellectual Property Organisation stating it was identical and confusing with its subsidiary, Mahindra Logistics Ltd and "deceptively similar to the Mahindra marks".The Geneva-based WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center has ordered the transfer of domain name mahindralogistics.Com used by Portfolio Brains LLC, to M&M. The disputed domain name "mahindralogistics.Com" is registered with NameKing.Com by Portfolio Brains.
The WIPO appointed panel found that Portfolio Brains "registered and used the disputed domain name in bad faith" and ordered the transfer of domain name to the M&M.
M&M is proprietor of numerous trademark registrations for MAHINDRA worldwide, the WIPO said.
As per the information available with WIPO, M&M had filed the complaint against the US-based firm on February 18 this year, although the domain name was first registered on March 12, 2007. It has not yet been used in connection with an active website.
Cybersquatting is an illegal activity of buying and officially recording an address on the internet that is the name of an existing company or an well-known person, with the intention of selling it to the owner in order to make money. M&M had contended that "disputed domain name was registered and is being used in bad faith primarily for the purposes of selling, renting" or otherwise transferring it to the company or "to its competitor for valuable monetary consideration".
Portfolio Brains, however, contended that it lacked any bad faith in the registration of the disputed domain name as it was not aware of the complainant based in India.
Mahindra Logistics Ltd is a subsidiary firm of the M&M Group engaged in transportation, inbound and outbound logistics and inter-plant movement.