What must a trademark owner prove to win a UDRP proceeding against a domain name holder?
In order to win a UDRP proceeding against a domain name holder, the trademark owner must prove ALL of the following: 1) that the domain name registered by the domain name holder is the same or confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in which the trademark owner has rights. UDRP decisions have gone both ways on whether a protest, criticism or parody site is confusingly similar when a domain name consists of the trademark and another word such as “sucks.” The most important factor seems to be whether or not the domain name owner is using the site for commercial purposes. If it is, the panel will probably find that the use of the trademark in the domain name causes a likelihood of confusion. 2) that the domain name owner does not have a legitimate interest in the domain name. If the domain name owner’s site is being used to criticize, protest or parody the trademarked entity or its owner’s products and/or services, the panel will probably find that the domain name owner has a l