Nominet has published the policy changes that have resulted from
two consultations. One of the main changes allows undisputed cases
to be settled in a summary judgment with a reduced fee.
"In cases where there is no response, the complainant is given
the option of obtaining a summary decision from an Expert, at a
cost of £200," said a Nominet statement. The cost of a full
judgment is £750. "The expert will not be required to write a full
decision with reasoning in these cases, but only to certify that
Rights and Abusive Registration have been made out by the
Complainant."
The change is intended to deal with the 52% of cases which are
not opposed.
The proving of those rights and that a registration is abusive
can be an expensive process, though, because lawyers are often
involved. The cost will not be significantly reduced unless that is
addressed said disputes expert David Barker of Pinsent Masons, the
law firm behind OUT-LAW.
"The summary judgment is a step in the right direction, but it
does not deal with the main cost, which is the substantial work
involved in setting out your rights and explaining that the other
party doesn't have rights," Barker said. "It is advisable to get a
lawyer to do this, which is what pushes the costs up."
Pinsent Masons participated in the consultation with a
suggestion that summary judgments for trade mark holders be made
without the need for extensive documentary submissions. Under the
proposal, a claimant would provide only a trade mark number as
evidence of rights in a disputed name and state that the domain
name's registration was an abusive registration, without supporting
evidence. If the registrant indicated an intention to defend, the
claimant must then file a full claim, together with evidence.
That proposal was not adopted by Nominet, which still requires a
full submission even in cases which will end up with a summary
judgment.
Other changes have been made to the policy, which acts as a
mediation service to save disputes always ending up in the courts.
Either party can appeal Nominet expert decisions through the courts
system.
The new rules will clarify that some behaviour, such as parking
domain names with services which display advertising, are not
necessarily abusive uses of a domain.
"We have clarified the Policy to confirm that certain activities
are not in themselves an Abusive Registration, but that cases of
this kind will depend on their particular facts," said Nominet.
The policy will also make clear that storing domain names for
sale is not necessarily an abusive use of the addresses.
"Trading in domain names for profit, and holding a large
portfolio of domain names, are of themselves lawful activities. The
Expert will review each case on its merits," says the new policy.
"Sale of traffic (i.e. connecting domain names to parking pages and
earning click-per-view revenue) is not of itself objectionable
under the Policy. However, the Expert will take into account the
nature of the Domain Name; the nature of the advertising links on
any parking page associated with the Domain Name; and that the use
of the Domain Name is ultimately the Respondent’s
responsibility."
The new policy will come into effect on 29th July.
