Domain Capital defends ColombianCoffee.com in UDRP

Panel notes the descriptive nature of the domain names and legitimacy of owning descriptive terms as an investment.

Domain Capital has successfully defended (pdf) the domain name colombiancoffee.com in a UDRP.

Federación Nacional de Cafeteros de Colombia, a non-profit representing Colombian coffee growers, filed the Complaint with World Intellectual Property Organization.

The Complainant has a figurative trademark for Cafe de Colombia. The panel did not decide on the issue of whether the domain is confusingly similar to the mark in which the Complainant has rights. It raised questions about the mark’s descriptive nature and how important the figurative elements were.

It found in favor of Domain Capital on the issue of rights or legitimate interests. It wrote:

The Panel agrees with the Respondent that the offering for sale of a domain name which comprises a generic or descriptive term, with no intent to target a complainant, may establish a legitimate interest.

It also found that the domain wasn’t registered and used in bad faith. It noted:

The Panel entirely accepts the Complainant’s case that in some circumstances offering for sale a domain name may of itself establish bad faith – the difficulty with the Complainant’s case is however that is not necessarily the case where the domain name in question comprises a descriptive term and is likely to be of value for that reason.

Cavelier Abogados represented the Complainant, and ESQwire.com represented Domain Capital.

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