Microsoft goes after cybersquatters

Stuart Corner
Wednesday, 14 March 2007 13:07

Your IT - Home IT

Microsoft is ramping up legal action against organisations that have registered Microsoft look-alike names. The move follows claims by the World Intellectual Property Organisation that the integrity of the domain name system is under increasing threat from trademark infringements and cybersquatting.

Cybersquatters register Internet domain names (such as winowslivemessenger.com and www.micr0soft.co.uk in the case of Microsoft) containing misspelled variations of widely recognised trademarked names and brands. They aim to diret users to sites filled with pay-per-click advertisements which can generate revenue for the registered domain owner and the online ad network.

 Microsoft says it has reclaimed more than 1,100 infringing domain names worldwide in the past six months. "We hope that our stance and activity on this issue will help motivate and empower other companies whose brands are abused to take action," the company said.

Microsoft has conducted five new legal actions in the UK against companies alleged to have registered domain names infringing on Microsoft's trademark and other statutory and common-law rights. In addition it has reached a settlement with UK-based Dyslexic Domain Company Limited, which Microsoft alleged had registered more than 6,000 domains designed to divert users trying to access Microsoft domains.

Microsoft has also settled two federal civil lawsuits filed in August 2006 against five named defendants who allegedly profited from domain names that infringed on Microsoft trademarks.