A story in the National Journal today, affirms what we predicted for 2009.
CADNA is gearing up for a new laws to expand trademark rights and increasing penalties for violation, using the launch of the new gTD’s as the basis for getting before congress.
On Tuesday, the Coalition Against Domain Name Abuse (CADNA) hosted a briefing for executives and Capitol Hill staffers to discuss how Congress can get involved, ICANN officials were told they were not welcome.
On Friday, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce will host an all event on the new gTLD’s which many trade groups have been invited to, including, the Financial Services Roundtable, National Association of Manufacturers, Motion Picture Association of America, Recording Industry Association of America, and ICANN.
Philip Corwin Will be attending the event, as the ICA’s representative.
Additionally the article confirms that House and Senate Commerce, Judiciary and Small Business committee aides have begun getting calls and letters about the new gTLD’s and increasing the protecting trademark holders and have on all existing TLD’s later this year
According to the report, Senator Olympia Snowe is expected to lead up the effort along with Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla.
You may recall that these 2 Senators were the major sponsors of the Snowe bill last year.
The article quotes Marriott IP counsel Elisabeth Roth Escobar as saying she looked forward to concrete steps being taken on Capitol Hill to strengthen existing federal statute aimed at fighting cyber-squatting.
The House Judiciary Committee has announced that it will be conducting an oversight hearing regarding ICANN.
The hearing will include the following topics:
The rationale for, and likely impact of ICANN’s proposed expansion of generic Top-Level Domains (gTLD’s) on the value of trademarks and the business operations of both small and large brand-name owners, an increased likelihood of confusion and expanded opportunity to defraud consumers as a result of expanding the gTLD’s, continuing concerns about ICANN’s inability or unwillingness to enforce the terms of Registrar Accreditation Agreements (RAA) that require registrants to provide truthful and accurate information to the WHOIS database, and concerns that relate to domain name tasting and domain name frontrunning.
In addition, the Committee may explore the role of the U.S. Government in ensuring that consumers and brand-name trademark owners are adequately and effectively protected from dangers that emanate from how the backbone of the Internet is governed and operated.
So we find ourselves in a familiar position.
Us against them.
In this case “us”, is represented by the ICA, in the form of an excellent attorney and Washington insider, Phillip Corwin, and “them” being represented by many Fortune 500 companies, trade groups, heavy, heavy hitters, their lobbyists, and the law firms that represent them.
The ICA needs money desperately.
You need the ICA desperately.
You don’t want all of these hearings to take place without representation.
Do yourself a big, big favor. Pass on one of the domains you would have bought at NameJet.com or SnapNames.com today, and contribute that amount to the ICA to protect all the other domains you already own.
The train is coming.
Don’t be an idiot and stand and the middle of the tracks.
Domainers who own tm domains need the ICA, secondly how strong is the ICA ? Schwartz left, Godaddy does not belong, Elequa, Mrs Jello, Several other top domainers and domaining companies do not belong.
Now the ICA would need numbers so maybe the ICA needs to have a $20 entry membership. The ICA does not give anything to its members that would cost anything so build the membership.
The scare tactics are fine, but the average domainer on a forum who owns a bunch of LLLL.com and other three word .com who are not tm typos do not have to worry about CADNA to say otherwise is nothing but a lie, because at the end of the day no matter how big the ICA got it would never match the strength of major global companies who are legitimately protecting their TM. Now I am all for fighting a situation like the LL.com that Elequa/FMA had that was wrong 100 %. But maybe forums need to not allow tm domains to be sold on their forum. Drop houses not catch them and allow them to be bought on the drop.
No one believes if they had a domain and say SONY wanted it that the ICA would help them, I am not saying they should but fact is they would not. So unless the individual domainer is getting help all they are doing is raising money for the ICA to protect the interests of their agenda.
There is a need for Cadna because if I am a company that over 100 years has built an international brand, why should it be ripped off by some asshole in his parents basement ? Reverse Hijacking and idiot tm domainers are too different things IMO. Great blog but the scare tactics about joining the ICA are a little much IMO, I think the average domainer needs to see every one in the industry who is a major player participating before worried about joining the ICA.
I’m really not sure what is going on behind the scenes at the ICA, if anything. However, in theory, we still need representation no matter how clean our domain portfolios are. Mine is a generic portfolio and I still am getting attacked by UDRP’s, threat letters, etc….
If you own a top-tier one word generic domain like even Rick’s Candy.com, you might get attacked. Some company comes out and says, “Hey under these new rules Snow got passed, Candy,com is trading off our trademark for our brand Candy Panties b/c they sold some chocolate in the form of panties”. Crazy shit like this is already happening and although much gets beaten in panel decisions or court decisions, just imagine what it will be like if they get a free reign. Legitimate domain owners without big bucks to defend themselves will be robbed left and right……especially once the word gets out how easy it is to “steal” a domain from an individual or small company.
This must be stopped.
Is the ICA still allowing domain auctions where proceeds are given to them?
.
8888
I’m not understanding your point
The really was a meeting on Tuesday in Washington about trademarks and domains.
There really exists a trade group of companies like dell, Verizon, HP, Time Warner and that group is called CADNA- Coalition Against Domain Name Abuse
There really is an all day meeting in Washington this Friday on these issues.
There really was a law proposed last year called the Snowe Bill that was pushed by the CADNA.
There really are congressional hearings scheduled this year on this issue.
These are all facts, not opinion not possibilities.
All Actually Happening or happened.
Now if you want to tell me your not concerned that CADNA want’s Congress to amend current federal trademark laws to increase the penalty for trademark infringement to $1,000,000, per domain, from its current $100K (in the Snowe Bill) and your not concerned that CADNA wants to make trademark infringement criminal, (also in the Snowe Bill) so that the next time you get a threatening letter from an attorney they will not only threaten you with a lawsuit but to also put you in jail, and finally your not concerned with Congress expanding the definition of “trademarks” to include terms not protected under current law (also in the Snowe Bill) then don’t worry about it.
Sleep well.
Don’t want to join the ICA fine with me.
Hire your own lobbyist, start your own domainer group and hire your own lobbyist.
The only thing you can’t do is make excuses, do nothing sit by and wait for the laws to change.
Johnny
What is going on behind the scenes at the ICA, is that Philip Corwin the representative of the ICA is on top of all these meetings, hearings and will represent our side, our view.
The ICA has to pick its fights very carefully as it is a underfunded organization.
They fought on the Snowe bill, the Kentucky domain Seizure action and other major issues effecting all domainers.
The ICA never was meant to be a organization that would deal with every domaining issue or represent individual domain holders in disputes with third parties.
Again if you don’t want to support the ICA, support another trade group that represents domain holders and has a full time attorney and lobbyist.
Oh, there is none.
Finally believe it or not, I have an extremely clean portfolio. I have never had a domain taken from me, ever.
So I write this not worried about me.
I worry about the industry as a whole.
I’ll be fine either way, but if laws get tighter, and unreasonable it will scare buyers away from domains.
Not helpful to anyone in this business
I welcome criminal legislation.
what is the alternative, certainly not codes of conduct with the dot me dot whatever coming. I hope that legislation will scare buyers away from domains. I hope that the USPTO do not ever allow any further generic TM’s That is the danger not CADNA. IMO CADNA would be working in domainers best interests to watch over generic TM applications .
Empedocles
Correct me if I wrong but I believe you do not live in the US.
If so its much easier to be in favor of a law when you have no exposure to it.
MBH I take offence to your attitude, I am a domainer with a portfolio of generic registrations that include a high number of international .com’s I also have 5 USPTO registered trademarks. It is your blog and I am grateful for the commitment it takes to keep the domain community informed, However if the $ is the only currency you will trade in ? I will not post comments again.
Empedocles
I’m not understanding your comment.
I made no reference to you, the quality of your portifilo or any reference to $.
All I’m saying is if you are not US based, which I believe you are not, then you are not subject to US laws.
Your comment was you welcome new US laws that may include criminal penalties and my point was simply that if you were US based, you might not be so eager for a new law that could put domainers in jail.
I’m rather lost with this. AFAIK generic words can be granted TM status if used distinctively rather than generically or descriptively, such as Tide for detergent and Shell for gas products.
But…I guess you know something I don’t since you have 5 USPTO TM registrations as you said.