Major Media Firm Inadvertently Allows Domain Name to Expire

April 1, 2012

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(Long Island, N.Y.) The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) formally refused to return to television and motion-picture powerhouse Mediaset an eponymous domain name that the company inexplicably permitted to expire. Mediaset, which is largely the creature of Italian billionaire Silvio Berlusconi, declined to bid when the expired name went up for auction. Didier Madiba, a resident of Delaware, won the auction for mediaset.com.

Attorneys for Mediaset had claimed the company held exclusive rights to the words contained within its Web name and alleged that Madiba had acted in bad faith by acquiring the domain name, but the WIPO panel ruled that the embedded words “media” and “set” were too generic to qualify for trademark protection and that Madiba had a right to use the domain name for legitimate business purposes. Madiba indicated that the name would be used to sell goods and services related to “media sets” such as high-end computer hardware or archival backups of entire operating systems and their supporting data.

The commerce website now associated with the domain name is currently a nonfunctional shell. Madiba has claimed that a battle with cancer will make it difficult to move quickly with plans for the website. Mediaset, which originally could have simply renewed its registration of the name for less than $20, faces an uphill fight as it continues to push its case in a civil court in Rome. A second appeal to WIPO is possible if Madiba later uses the name in a manner likely to lead to confusion over the ownership of the website.

Mediaset could alternatively attempt to buy back the domain name for a significant sum, but Madiba potentially faces legal pitfalls over impure intentions. So-called “domain squatting” is viewed with deep skepticism by WIPO panelists and the courts. Mediaset’s operations are unlikely to be significantly affected by the loss of the .com version of its name because the company had been using other Web names instead, including mediaset.it and mediaset.net.

Industry observers in Italy have suggested that the slip reveals cluelessness about the Internet by Silvio Berlusconi, a former Italian prime minister who has been struggling with legal problems related to his tenure in office. Other commentators have brought up the possibility that the slip was a purposeful act of revenge against Silvio Berlusconi by an unknown company employee upset over Berlusconi’s supposed attacks against freedom of speech on the Web.

Other companies have made similar goofs over the years. Perhaps the most famous case is that of Microsoft, which allowed its critical passport.com domain name to quietly expire early in 1999. Ironically, only the quick action of a Linux proponent spared the company from intense embarrassment. Michael Chaney noticed a problem with the associated Hotmail email service and paid the renewal fee for Microsoft, which initially refused to recognize the act of kindness but later reimbursed Chaney and expressed gratitude.

Posted by News LI Editor · Filed Under
Tech

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