Domain and Trademark Blog

Virginia Tech has been hit with a counterclaim after it attempted to sue a company for using its ‘Hokie’ trademark without the university’s consent.
John Wilburn of Hokie Real Estate, the company served in the original suit, has petitioned the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to block the action by Virginia Tech.
Wilburn claims the college is …

Researchers at Texas A&M University have discovered a new method of tracking down botnet sites that use ever-changing domain names to keep their malware active.
Botnets are notorious for changing their domain names regularly and the cybercriminals often squat domain names that are misspellings of popular brand names or major news issues — like the recent …

An international trademark case being tried in the European Union could have a major impact on Google’s flagship advertising software, AdWords.
The case in question is between British retailer Marks & Spencer and Interflora — with the latter claiming that the former bought up trademarked terms on Google’s display ad system to undermine the success of …

The introduction of new top level domain names — including the recently approved .xxx Web suffix — could result in a sharp rise in the number of cybersquatting cases.
According to Fresh Business Thinking contributor and top level domain name expert Andreas Edler, while there will be far more Web addresses to choose from as a …

High schools in Florida could soon find themselves battling against universities for the right to hold onto their names and mascots.
Following a high-profile case in which Salem High and Memorial Middle School were forced to give up their Seminoles logos after a legal challenge by Florida State University (FSU), it appears the trademark dispute floodgates …

Microblogging website Twitter has had its trademark application for the word “Tweet” turned down by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
The USPTO turned down Twitter’s request in 2009 because a company called Twittad had already registered the phrase “Let Your Ad Meet Tweets” in 2008.
After further investigation, USPTO upheld its original decision at the …

Internet service providers (ISPs) have come under renewed pressure from the film and music industry to block websites that offer filesharing facilities.
Copyright holders from both industries have banded together and identified around 100 websites they claim are being used to illegally distribute copyrighted material.
Film and music moguls want to work closely with ISPs to create …

Database specialist Oracle may be toying with the idea of selling sun.com — one of the most lucrative domain names on the entire Internet.
The firm acquired the website when it took over Sun Microsystems, but it is now winding up its sun.com offering and the actual Internet real estate could be worth a sum.
One analyst …

Online payment service Paypal has been the victim of a new phishing attack which manages to bypass security measures built into modern Web browsers.
Users are now being warned to be cautious when responding to, or acting upon, emails that appear to be sent from the firm.
According to the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team (UCERT), the …

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has finally approved the .xxx top level domain name — which will allow for the creation of a set of websites dedicated to the adult entertainment industry.
ICANN’s decision was ten years in the making and the organization has come up against a huge number of barriers …