KLM wins '.info' name from Hungarian cybersquatter

The Dutch airline KLM has won the domain name 'klm.info' from a Hungarian cybersquatter. To date, there have been fewer than 10 decisions regarding the new '.info' domain, although several hundred are pending.

After 'klm.info' was registered by the Excelsa Cooperative of Hungary, a representative of Excelsa sent an email to the Dutch airline offering to sell the domain name for $140,000.

At the hearing, Excelsa argued that it was not guilty of cybersquatting because it had registered the domain name as a portal for businesses, and the portal's initials were 'KLM'. The panellist of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) rejected this argument, as well as the argument that the name was not registered with the intent of commercial gain. The panellist wrote that Excelsa's explanation for its proposed use of the website could not be accepted as "anything other than minimal camouflage for a cybersquatting operation planned from the outset." Applying the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy, the panellist found in favour of KLM, and order the transfer of the domain name.

Afilias, the registry for the '.info' domain, has filed challenges with WIPO concerning over 700 '.info' domain names which, according to the claims, were fraudulently registered. In total, Afilias expects to challenge at least 10,000 registrations.

Jon Fell, Masons, London