Cybersquatting disputes grow in 2010

An Iranian man surfs the internet at a cafe in centeral of Tehran
An Iranian man surfs the internet at a cafe in centeral of Tehran, January 2011. The number of challenges for cybersquatting -- the misleading use of trademarks for Internet domain names -- rose by 28 percent last year, the World Intellectual Property Organisation said.

The number of challenges for cybersquatting -- the misleading use of trademarks for Internet domain names -- rose by 28 percent last year, the World Intellectual Property Organisation said Thursday.

Some 2,696 cases were filed by trademark holders from 57 countries, including major companies such as , Bank of America, and Pfizer, over the use of their brands on internet address names, said WIPO.

The Geneva-based agency arbitrates disputes. Most of them related to the retail trade, banking, pharmaceuticals, IT and fashion industries.

WIPO Director General Francis Gurry described it as "a significant level of increase, 16 percent higher than the previous lead year in 2008."

But he had no explanation for the growth, apart from the constant increase in overall domain name registrations on the Internet.

(c) 2011 AFP

Citation: Cybersquatting disputes grow in 2010 (2011, March 31) retrieved 28 March 2024 from https://phys.org/news/2011-03-cybersquatting-disputes.html
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