Firm Behind “SkyCam” Sports Cameras Loses Domain Dispute

Kevin Ham’s firm wins case brought by SkyCam.

SkyCam, the firm behind those overhead cameras used during football broadcasts, has lost a domain name dispute with Kevin Ham’s Vertical Axis.

A three person panel was split on whether or not the domain name was registered in bad faith. Two of the panelists ruled that it wasn’t registered and used in bad faith since:

– the skycam.com domain name is comprised entirely of common terms that have many meanings apart from use in Complainant’s SKYCAM mark

– there is no evidence that Respondent knew or ought to have known of the SKYCAM mark when it registered the disputed domain name. Complainant provides no evidence of any marketing for its mark prior to the registration of the domain name on June 25, 2001

– The general link to offer for sale a domain name incorporating generic terms is not probative of a “primary purpose” to sell the disputed domain name to Complainant and is in itself not evidencing that Respondent registered the disputed domain name in bad faith

– no evidence that Respondent did register the disputed domain name to prevent Complainant from owning a domain name incorporating Complainant’s trademark, or to disrupt Complainant’s business, or to confuse consumers seeking to find Complainant’s website

Still, one panelist disagreed and stated that he thinks the domain name ought to be transferred to SkyCam. That panelist is Flip Petillon, who also happens to be a member of European Communities Trade Mark Association.

Ari Goldberger’s Esqwire represented Vertical Axis.