Cybersquatting is big business. But many domain owners simply don’t appreciate cybersquatting law. In this article, a UDRP referee discusses common mistakes and misconceptions about the UDRP.

We recently interviewed a UDRP arbitrator for both the National Arbitration Forum (NAF) and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) about common mistakes Respondents make when responding to Uniform Complaints of Domain Name Disputes. A few key points are worth noting:

• Domains with descriptive or geographic connotations can avoid accusations of trademark infringement by ensuring that those domains are not used in ways that encroach on the trademark holders’ products and services. them
• Just because a domain name is descriptive doesn’t mean Respondent automatically wins.
• Domain owners need to ‘use’ their domains in a legitimate way. Putting up a parking page that offers advertisements for the products and services of competitors of the owner’s trademark is the best way to lose a UDRP arbitration.
• Sometimes respondents complain that the word is descriptive, ignoring that its use is specifically for brand equity. This completely undermines your credibility. “You just shouldn’t so blatantly use the domain name for the value of the built-in trademark owner, which is exactly what this policy is supposed to prevent.”
• The UDRP defendant sometimes argues that it has no control over the advertisements displayed on its website. That’s not a good defense and probably won’t prevent a bad faith determination. “It’s the owner who controls what gets posted, and there’s no liability. There’s a living person who owns that domain name, and if he doesn’t make specific content there, he allows it and sometimes causes that specific content, even on a parking page.”
• The “innocent bystander” defense does not work with most referees.
• Domain owners are expected to verify trademarks before registering domains.

The full UDRP arbitrator interview reveals some really great insights that all domain name investors can learn from. it’s no use ignoring trademark law or pretending it doesn’t exist. Wishing the UDRP were different is fine, but it won’t help you if you are sued for arbitration. Be smart with your domain portfolio and protect your best domains from transfer orders. You will not regret. An ounce of prevention is really worth a pound of cure.