Name hijacking in AquaFX.com case — Reverse domain

Panel states case was a Plan B attempt to get the domain name.

A three-person National Arbitration Forum panel has found Aqua Engineering & Equipment, Inc. to have engaged in reverse domain name hijacking over the domain name AquaFX.com.

The firm failed to convince the panel that it met any of three necessary points of UDRP: that the domain was confusingly similar to a mark in which it has rights, that the domain owner lacks a legitimate interest in the domain, and that the domain was registered in bad faith.

Aqua Engineering & Equipment relied on a stylized trademark for “Aqua Fx The Leaders in Reverse Osmosis”. Furthermore, this mark was registered following the respondent registered the domain name.

The panel determined that this was a “Plan B” reverse domain name hijacking attempt.

The domain owner was represented by ESQwire.com.

In a different National Arbitration Forum decision today, panelist Calvin A. Hamilton declined to find reverse domain name hijacking for the domain name shippingquestscams.com. His reason: he found that the domain was confusingly similar to the complainant’s trademark. That’s unfortunate; panels ought to discourage complainants from filing complaints against non-commercial gripe sites.