Forum Moderators: LifeinAsia
I found a few previous posts related to this subject, but if possible I would appreciate any specific advice people might have.
A while ago I registered a domain name for a project I was undertaking as an alternative to my day job. I found a snappy domain name which I really liked and reflected the service it would offer, developed a brief site outlining and offering services, and to be perfectly honest left it on the back burner until which time I have the time and resources to make a really go of it as a business.
I've done a very small amount of low-level business through the site already but nothing too committed.
The reason for my post is that I came across a new site today that uses the the same domain name as me, except .co.uk rather than the .net I have. What caught my eye is it's also using the same name I had given to my proposed business, i.e. domain name -tld +service specific words. I also used some unusual mixed case lettering in the business name I used because of the actual domain name and this other site is using exactly the same.
As far as I can tell, this other site is at a similar state to mine - they use a business name which is not a genuine registered company and they haven't trademarked anything. We are both in the UK. Their site was registered after mine. I susepct they must be aware of my site because of the similarities I mentioned.
I guess the reason for my post is to see if anyone could help me clarify which is my best course of action. Or just to tell me that I should have considered all this long ago ;)
Should I...
* Leave things as they are, and cut my losses if I have to abandon the domain name because my competitors trademark the name or register the company name (boo!)
* Bluff and try to get the other site to just stop using the name (hehe ;))
* Do whatever is necessary to retain my domain/business name i.e. trademark it (or is there something else I could do?) (arg! time and expense at the worst possible time...)
Any advice greatly appreciated :)
Not sure if I can be of help but if I were you I would try to get some legal advice - noone here is qualified to give you proper legal advice (at least I don't think there are).
Depending on the company name - if very specific, I would try to trademark it although I am not sure that a trademark would protect it for actions taken before it's been trademarked (if you see what I mean).
If very general terms not sure if it's worth trademarking it.
Just one question - why did you buy the .net and not the .co.uk? If you're UK based it would have make sense to buy both :)
In summary - try and get legal advice - some solicitors will give you a free 1 hour consultation so it shouldn't cost you anything to get proper info.
Hope this helps
Leo
One question though. You mentioned that you registered for a domain. Did you register your business legitimately as well, or just the domain? Not sure how it works in the UK, but here in the States you need to at least fill out a DBA with the county in order to be legit.
If you didn't register your business, I would say that your legal grounds might be limited, but I'm not a lawyer.
You can always send a cease and desist letter to the other guy and see how he responds. You could follow up with an offer to purchase his domain name. You could even have just found yourself a useful business partner--always look for an upside.
In the UK you don't have to be a registered company to set up your own business, you can just be a 'sole trader', trading under your name or a company name. The shop I work in full time employs about 8 staff, but they are not a registered company, the man who owns the business (which comprises of 2 retail shops and a website) is classed as a sole trader because he hasn't registered as a company, whioch is all above board.
The one thing doublespeak should have done though is notify the Inland Revenue that he is self employed within 3 months of starting the website, or else you may find yourself with a fine when they do find out. You will then have to file a tax return every year.
Anyway, you may have a case against him, especially if you can prove you registered the domain first (a WHOIS lookup would show that), and if the site is very similar to your's. I expect the owner made the site with the intent of it to look similar. He may think you are a big name player in your field, and is taking custom from people who assume you have the .co.uk name. They think they are dealing with you, but they are dealing with him, so he is manipulating the customers. As you said you have had a small amount of business, so I guess he isn't getting the traffic he may have expected, and may be willing to sell at a good price.
If not then it may be worth seeing a lawyer, or if your english skills are up to scratch, write him a nice letter, explaining that you have sought the advice of a solicitor and your evidence against him.
If you don't already display a copyright notice on your website e.g '(c) All logo's, images and content are copywright mysite.com 2004-2005'. He will be infringing copyright laws if he has stolen any logos or images etc, and I think you could fine him the same way that Warner Bros could fine you if you duplicated one of their films (in the UK you are not even allowed a backup of a film etc for your own purposes (contrary to popular belief), it is breaking the law.).
Anyway, that is just what I think. I am in no ways a qualified lawyer, or any kind of expert on law, but I think you may have something to work with. I would recommend asking a lawyer, or having a scout around on the net to see what you can find.
You technically do not need a copyright statement on a website as you have automatic copyright as soon as you create the new logo, image or content (it has to be new and not an adapted logo as far as I can remember). The only thing you have to do is prove that you designed the image before the other person did.
As far as your original question, if you registered a Ltd company you would be covered for the trading name, but as a sole trader you are not. And I'd echo the comment about registering with the Inland Revenue.
they use a business name which is not a genuine registered company and they haven't trademarked anything.
As I understood the proceedures for registering a".co.uk" ..Your "competitor" couldn't have registered his ".co.uk" without first being registered as either a sole trader or a limited company of some sort in the Uk ...
That would seem to suggest that in fact they were registered as bussiness in the Uk with that name ..check the site records of companies house ..
If "you" are not personally registered they would probably be the winner in any dispute over any domain name ..
I was totally convinced that the rules were the same as for LTD .UK ( inspite of never having actually "seen" these rules ..just going on "info" provided by clients! long time ago ..never looked into it myself til your post !
Learn something new every day ..
(never beleive a client ;)...
Uptil now I let them register their own ( I personally don't bother with anything other than .com.net.org )..Nothing else has any "cred" ..
