Bond Pearce

From 7 September 2011, the top level domain (TLD) for the adult entertainment industry, .xxx will start to take registrations from both members of the industry (the "Sunrise A" period) and from trade mark owners seeking to block the registration of .xxx domain names which include its trade marks (the "Sunrise B" period).  Sunrise A registrations will lead to a registered domain name which can host live adult content, whereas Sunrise B applications lead only to the mark applied for being blocked from use.

The Sunrise B applicants will pay a non-refundable fee for each blocking request, in the region of USD 200-300.  This will lead to an anonymous WHOIS entry for the domain name.  However, this will not protect against "typo squatting" variations on those trade marks.

If a Sunrise B applicant seeks to block a .xxx domain name applied for by a member of the adult entertainment industry, the Sunrise A applicant will receive the registration, but will also be notified of the competing IP rights and a dispute may follow.  .xxx domain names will be subject to mechanisms to prevent 'abusive registrations' using a similar test to that currently used for .com and .net domain names.

From 8 November to 25 November, .xxx domain names will be registrable on a first come first served basis.  In this period trade mark owners may be able to secure non-resolving registrations of domain names that contain typographical variations of their marks.

Internet retailers should continue to keep a watchful eye on the use of their trade marks, trade names or variations on terms connected to their business.  If you have a watch service in place, you may want to obtain confirmation that .xxx domain names will also be caught.

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Bond Pearce LLP is a leading commercial law firm providing regulatory, corporate, commercial, real estate and dispute resolution services to some of the UK’s pre-eminent organisations. We are recognised nationally particularly for our work in the energy, commercial insurance, real estate and retail sectors, and for our approach to client service. © Copyright 2011 Bond Pearce LLP. All rights reserved. 3, Temple Quay, Temple Back East Bristol, BS1 6DZ