Just a few weeks ago, we told you about Apple’s dispute over domain name iPhone5.com. We’re now happy to report that Apple won the complain.
The domain name iPhone5.com was first registered back in 2008 as an internet forum for Apple fans. The owners of the website also claimed that they do not endorse, sponsor, or affiliate with Apple’s iPhone.
Apple filed the dispute with World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), an organization that specializes in solving domain disputes. iPhone5.com has now been taken over by Corporation Service Company, a business firm that also offers protection services for domains. When you search for the page, doesn’t take you to the forum anymore, it shows a blank page instead.
It’s important to note that this does not confirm that Apple will name their next generation smartphone as iPhone 5. This also wasn’t the first time that Apple reclaimed their domains. Just last summer, they took over iPods.com and then they acquired iCloud.com for $4.5 million (according to a rumor). When you are the world’s most valuable company, you can do that.
It’s speculated that Apple probably won’t use the domain names, rather they buy them up to protect the company’s brand and products.
Since Apple followed the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy(UDRP), they’ll pay thousands instead of millions to reclaim the domain. This type of resolution claims that most disputes must come to a conclusion before the registrar cancels or suspends the domain name. Furthermore, disputes that arise from an abusive registration of domain name (like cyber squatting) such domains could be “addressed by expedited administrative proceedings that the holder of trademark rights initiates by filing a complaint with an approved dispute-resolution service provider.”
It’s a good move on Apple’s behalf to reclaim similar domain names, especially if it’s under a parked domain. With all the confusing rumors involving the possibility of the iPhone 5, it’s more important than ever to protect the brand.
