The Freename Forum

The Court of Arbitration of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the Internet Commerce Association (ICA) are joining forces: both organizations have put together a project team to examine reforms to the UDRP.

On October 24, 1999 - exactly 25 years ago to the day - the Internet administration ICANN introduced the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) to resolve international domain name disputes. Trademark owners were convinced by the UDRP right from the start, as it was quick (it usually only takes a few weeks from the filing of a complaint to the decision), inexpensive (fees start at US$ 1,500) and effective (if the trademark owner wins, the disputed domain is transferred to him, which is only possible in exceptional cases under German law). On December 2, 1999, the World Wrestling Federation Entertainment Inc. applied for the first UDRP proceedings in the dispute over the domain worldwrestlingfederation.com; on January 14, 2000, the arbitration court decided to transfer the domain. Since then, over 70,000 further proceedings have followed. Even though there have been a number of minor updates over the years, the substantive core of the UDRP is still based on the regulations from 1999.

This could change soon. In mid-October 2024, WIPO and the ICA, which primarily represents the interests of domain traders, jointly announced that they were working on a reform of the UDRP. The main aim of the project is to maintain the UDRP as an efficient and predictable out-of-court dispute resolution mechanism for clear-cut trademark disputes. However, there does not seem to be too much need for change; the press release states that any recommendations for reform must be underpinned by a proven, compelling need for change; case-specific or anecdotal shortcomings of the UDRP, on the other hand, would not justify a comprehensive revision. The project team, coordinated by Brian Beckham (WIPO) and Zak Muscovitch (ICA), consists of experts and UDRP stakeholders from around the world, including Sarah Deutsch (ICANN), Paul Keating (lawyer) and Nat Cohen (domain investor). The project team has already held a number of discussions, including with ccTLD registries such as Nominet, registrars (Tucows, Namecheap, GoDaddy), UDRP arbitrators (Forum, CAC and CIIDRC), proponents of UDRP reform (Georges Nahitchevansky and Steve Levy) and lawyers specializing in representing domain owners (Gerald Levine and John Berryhill). The very fact that WIPO is including domain investors in its discussions shows not only that the industry has matured, but also that the importance of secondary trading in domains will continue to grow.

The project is independent of ICANN and therefore runs outside the usual policy processes. The review is limited to the existing trademark law framework of the UDRP and is based on the practical experience of panelists, legal advisors, parties and providers. A draft report is currently being prepared and is expected to be made available to a wider public in early 2025. The final report will then be forwarded to ICANN for consideration in any UDRP review.

The WIPO announcement can be found at:
https://www.wipo.int/amc/en/domains/res ... eview.html