Posted: May 18th, 2015

Whether current UK trade mark law provides an adequate the scope of protection to internet domain name: comparing and contrasting with the United States jurisdiction.

A domain name is a name identifying an internet resource such as a website. Domain names play a crucial role in the world of cyberspace enabling people to access any material on the internet. So, it is said that economic value can be found in the domain name depending on whether such domain name is unique. However, at the present, no laws deal with domain name dispute separately because it is still controversial that are domain names part of other intellectual property rights? The majority of domain names dispute seem to be involved with trademark in the context of dilution of trademark. Dilution is a concept permitting the owner of a famous trademark to prohibit others from using the mark in a way that dilutes its distinctiveness. This dissertation will examine the legal protection related to domain name under UK jurisdiction in comparison with United States jurisdiction by studying and analyse the legal problems on the internet domain name e.g. ownership disputes, protection of rights in domain names, enforcement of rights and dispute resolutions. It will then consider that whether current trademark law provides an adequate the scope of protection to internet domain name.