Decisión del Panel Administrativo nº D2019-0089 of WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center, March 14, 2019 (case Branch Banking and Trust Co. v. BBT BBT)
| Resolution Date | March 14, 2019 |
| Issuing Organization | WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center |
| Decision | Transfer |
| Dominio | Generic Domains |
Complainant is Branch Banking and Trust Co. of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States of America (“United States” or “US”), represented by CSC Digital Brand Services Group AB, Sweden.
Respondent is BB&T BB&T of Raleigh, North Carolina, United States.
The disputed domain name [bbandtwealths.com] (the “Domain Name”) is registered with PDR Ltd. d/b/a PublicDomainRegistry.com (the “Registrar”).
The Complaint was filed with the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center (the “Center”) on January 16, 2019. On January 16, 2019, the Center transmitted by email to the Registrar a request for registrar verification in connection with the Domain Name. On January 18, 2019, the Registrar transmitted by email to the Center its verification response confirming that Respondent is listed as the registrant and providing the contact details.
The Center verified that the Complaint satisfied the formal requirements of the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Policy” or “UDRP”), the Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Rules”), and the WIPO Supplemental Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Supplemental Rules”).
In accordance with the Rules, paragraphs 2 and 4, the Center formally notified Respondent of the Complaint, and the proceedings commenced on January 18, 2019. In accordance with the Rules, paragraph 5, the due date for Response was February 7, 2019. Respondent did not submit any response. Accordingly, the Center notified Respondent’s default on February 11, 2019.
The Center appointed Christopher S. Gibson as the sole panelist in this matter on February 19, 2019. The Panel finds that it was properly constituted. The Panel has submitted the Statement of Acceptance and Declaration of Impartiality and Independence, as required by the Center to ensure compliance with the Rules, paragraph 7.
Complainant is a financial services holding company based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and founded in 1872. Complainant operates over 2,100 financial centers in 15 states and Washington, DC, offering consumer and commercial banking, securities brokerage, asset management, mortgage and insurance products and services. As of September 30, 2017, Complainant is a Fortune 500 company reporting USD 220.3 billion in assets and a market capitalization of USD 37.0 billion. Complainant employs more than 37,000 people and ranks number 14 on the list of the largest banks in the United States.
Some of Complainant’s most recent awards include:
- In 2017, Keynote ranked Complainant first for overall customer experience among US retail banking websites for the third straight year, placing first in all four customer experience categories.
- For the third year in a row, BB&T Wealth was named in Barron’s “Top 40 Wealth Managers” list, which ranks US wealth managers by client assets in accounts of USD 5 million or more.
- Forbes ranked Complainant as the top large bank among America’s Best Large Employers for 2017.
- Complainant has one of the top five mobile bank apps in the 2017 S&P Global Market Intelligence Mobile Bank App ranking.
Complainant maintains its primary website at the domain name [bbt.com]. Alexa.com ranks [bbt.com] as the 3,796th most popular website globally and the 761st most popular website in the United States. According to Similarweb.com, Complainant’s website had 13.6 million total visits in November 2017.
Complainant owns a number of trademarks registered with the United States Patent & Trademark
Office (“USPTO”), including the following marks registered in class 36 (the “BB&T” mark):
- BB&T, registration no. 1382662, dated February 11, 1986
- BB&T, registration no. 4189770, dated August 14, 2012
- BB&T, registration no. 4583618, dated August 12, 2014
- BBT.COM, registration no. 2895994, dated 19-10-2004
- BB&T WEALTH VANTAGE, registration no. 4151318, dated May 29, 2012
(i) Identical or confusingly similar
Complainant states that the registration with the USPTO of its trademarks is prima facie evidence of the validity of its BB&T trademarks, of Complainant’s ownership of these marks, and of Complainant’s exclusive right to use these marks in commerce on or in connection with the goods and services specified in the registration certificates.
Further, Complainant states that in creating the Domain Name, Respondent has added the generic, descriptive term “wealths” to Complainant’s BB&T trademark, thereby making the Domain Name confusingly similar to Complainant’s mark. The fact that the “wealths” term is closely associated with Complainant’s brand and trademark...
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