Combat sports gear company fails to take domain through cybersquatting claim
AI investor James Booth has successfully defended the ownership of a .ai domain against a cybersquatting complaint brought by a martial arts apparel company. The dispute concerned the domain hyperfly.ai and was decided by a three-member panel at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
The complainant, Do or Die, Inc., which operates under the brand name Hyperfly and sells combat sports gear and apparel, alleged that Booth had registered and used the domain in bad faith to profit from their trademark. The panel reviewed evidence submitted by both sides and evaluated whether the complaint met the legal tests applied in domain name disputes, including whether the domain was identical or confusingly similar to the trademark, whether the registrant had legitimate rights or interests in the domain, and whether it was registered and used in bad faith.
After assessing the submissions, the panel concluded that the complainant did not establish bad faith registration or use. The panel found no convincing evidence that the respondent, James Booth, specifically targeted the Hyperfly brand when registering the domain. Instead, the panel considered the domain as a likely purchase from a broader acquisition strategy focused on .ai names with perceived commercial value.
The evidence on record suggests that the Respondent, on balance of probabilities, registered the disputed domain name as part of a broader batch acquisition of multiple potentially valuable domain names in the AI space, and was selected for its perceived commercial or brandable value as combination of two ordinary English words with substantial independent commercial appeal across multiple industries, without specifically targeting the Complainants.
The panel also noted that while Hyperfly may be well known within the martial arts and combat sports community, the term “hyperfly” or similar combinations of common English words are used by a range of parties across different sectors. That broader usage weighed against an inference that the respondent had acted with the intention of taking advantage of the complainant’s mark.
In addition to dismissing the core allegations, the panel considered whether the complaint amounted to reverse domain name hijacking—an abusive filing intended to wrest a domain from a rightful registrant through the administrative process. The panel declined to make that finding, determining that although the complainant did not succeed, the record did not support a conclusion that the complaint was brought in bad faith or was objectionably abusive.
Procedurally, the matter proceeded under WIPO’s Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy, which governs disputes between trademark owners and domain registrants. The policy requires a three-part showing by complainants: identicality or confusing similarity, lack of rights or legitimate interests by the registrant, and registration and use in bad faith. The panel’s decision reflected a common outcome in cases where a domain name consists of ordinary words or word combinations that are attractive to a broad commercial audience, especially in an emerging top-level domain such as .ai.
According to the decision, the respondent had legal representation during the proceedings, while the complainant was represented internally. The outcome preserves ownership of hyperfly.ai for James Booth, allowing him to continue to control the domain. The ruling illustrates the challenge trademark holders can face when attempting to claim descriptive or compound-domain names in newer gTLDs, particularly when multiple third parties use similar names across unrelated markets.
This case highlights several practical points for brand owners and domain investors: register defensive domain portfolios if brand protection is a priority, maintain clear records and demonstrable use when asserting trademark rights, and recognize that panels will scrutinize claims of targeting and bad faith—especially where domain names are composed of common words with cross-industry appeal.