There is a domain that is one letter different from mine. Right now they have just parked it and the asking price is WAY more than I can afford.
The problem is that they are mimicking my site. They use the same folders and page URLs as on popular pages of my site. (I have some odd page names so I know it is not a fluke)
Is there anything I can do to make them stop? Are there any rules about this? It's so frustrating!
Thanks so much!
It's frustrating but I will just have deal with it :-)
If it is as you say that they have basically mirrored your urls , then that would be evidence of bad faith (the reason they registered the domain).
The domain being only letter off of your domain and wesbite would be confusingly to your servicemark.
Thos 2 combined is evidence that the registrant has no legitimate interest in the domain.
And the fact that they have it parked (showing adverts) means they are profiting off your servcie mark
You can not only stop them but be awarded the domain ..
[icann.org...]
"a. Applicable Disputes. You are required to submit to a mandatory administrative proceeding in the event that a third party (a "complainant") asserts to the applicable Provider, in compliance with the Rules of Procedure, that
(i) your domain name is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in which the complainant has rights; and
(ii) you have no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the domain name; and
(iii) your domain name has been registered and is being used in bad faith.
In the administrative proceeding, the complainant must prove that each of these three elements are present.
b. Evidence of Registration and Use in Bad Faith. For the purposes of Paragraph 4(a)(iii), the following circumstances, in particular but without limitation, if found by the Panel to be present, shall be evidence of the registration and use of a domain name in bad faith:
(i) circumstances indicating that you have registered or you have acquired the domain name primarily for the purpose of selling, renting, or otherwise transferring the domain name registration to the complainant who is the owner of the trademark or service mark or to a competitor of that complainant, for valuable consideration in excess of your documented out-of-pocket costs directly related to the domain name; or
(ii) you have registered the domain name in order to prevent the owner of the trademark or service mark from reflecting the mark in a corresponding domain name, provided that you have engaged in a pattern of such conduct; or
(iii) you have registered the domain name primarily for the purpose of disrupting the business of a competitor; or
(iv) by using the domain name, you have intentionally attempted to attract, for commercial gain, Internet users to your web site or other on-line location, by creating a likelihood of confusion with the complainant's mark as to the source, sponsorship, affiliation, or endorsement of your web site or location or of a product or service on your web site or location."
The process runs around $1,500 . You must win al3accounts but from what you have said so far loks very reasonable.
You can even represent yourself if you feel comfortable doing so.
Just a matter of how important your business is to you , is the parked domain just a pest or a threat .
