eharmony.com Inc. v Donavan [2007] DRS 4202 (12 February 2007)

eharmony.com Inc. v Donavan [2007] DRS 4202 (12 February 2007)

The complainant established rights in the 'EHARMONY' mark, and the respondent's use of the domain name to host parking pages with links to competing relationship services was likely to confuse users and was not fair use, constituting abusive registration under the Nominet DRS Policy.

Citation
[2007] DRS 4202
Parties
Complainant: eharmony.com Inc.; Respondent: Brett Donavan
Jurisdiction
United Kingdom
Judgment Date
12 February 2007
Procedural Posture
Domain Name Dispute (nominet Drs) / Expert Determination
Outcome
Complaint upheld; domain name to be transferred to complainant.
Legal Topics
Domain Name Disputes, Trade Marks, Passing Off, Abusive Registration
Intellectual Property Internet Law Domain Name Disputes Trade Marks Passing Off Abusive Registration

Case Brief

Summary, issues, holding and outcome

More case intelligence is available

Unlock the full research layer for this judgment.

Full judgment text Downloadable case file Legal principles 3 Authorities cited 3 Party arguments 2 Amounts and remedies 1
Sign in to unlock

Parties

eharmony.com Inc.

Complainant

Brett Donavan

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Domain Name Dispute (nominet Drs) / Expert Determination

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the complainant has rights in the name 'EHARMONY' identical or similar to the domain name.
  2. 2 Whether the domain name in the hands of the respondent is an abusive registration under the Nominet DRS Policy.

Ratio Decidendi

The complainant established rights in the 'EHARMONY' mark, and the respondent's use of the domain name to host parking pages with links to competing relationship services was likely to confuse users and was not fair use, constituting abusive registration under the Nominet DRS Policy.

Court Disposition

Complaint upheld; domain name to be transferred to complainant.

Orders

  • The domain name eharmony.co.uk is to be transferred to eharmony.com Inc.