The internet search giant Google recently enforced its rights on the domain name googblog.com, which was illegally registered in India in Gujarat last year. Google challenged the registration of the domain name in WIPO, in March this year, under the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP). Google stated that the domain name was confusingly similar to its trademark. While ‘Google’ has been in use since 1997, the company ahs also been using the word ‘goog’ as its NASDAQ financial stock ticker since 2004. Moreover, the Google blog service is operated under the name of Blogger.

According to reports, Goog Blog was being used as the web portal for latest tech news, windows guide, mp3 downloads, greetings, lyrics etc. World Intellectual Property Organisation ultimately ordered transfer of the domain name.

Cybersquatting is an activity of buying and officially recording a domain name on the internet that is a name or is deceptively similar to the name of an existing company or individual, with the intent of diverting the traffic to the address to make money, or to sell it to the owner for a sizeable consideration. WIPO has reported a record number of cybersquatting cases being filed in 2008, the mark touching to 2329. To improve efficiency, timeliness and respond to the growing demand, WIPO has proposed one “eUDRP Initiative” too. It does away with the requirement of submitting and distributing paper copies of pleadings, using email instead.

The growing number of cases occurs at a time when Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), responsible for managing the generic top level domain space (gTLD) is preparing to launch large numbers of new gTLDs. ICANN’s current expectation is to begin accepting applications by late 2009. In line with a global percentage increase in the share of ccTLD registrations in recent years, the WIPO Center saw the number of cases involving ccTLD domain name jump from 1% in 2000 to 7% in 2007 to 13% in 2008. The number of ccTLD registries which have designated WIPO to provide domain name dispute resolution services rose to 56 with the addition of Bermuda (.bm), Montenegro (.me), the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (.mp), Sierra Leone (.sl) and Bolivia (.bo).

WIPO Center has agreed to administer disputes during the pre-application phase based on a “legal rights objection” and also supports establishment of a broad post-delegation dispute resolution procedure by ICANN. Such procedure would be made applicable through new gTLD registry agreements, which would provide trademark holders with a mechanism to protect their rights in the post-delegation conduct of the new gTLD, by filing an administrative case against a registry whose manner of operation is considered to cause or materially contribute to trademark infringement. WIPO’s proposals also aim to encourage best practices by registries, particularly with regard to the widespread availability and use of fair and effective notice and take down options for rights holders.