Decisión del Panel Administrativo nº DEU2019-0005 of WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center, July 02, 2019 (case Cloudflare, Inc., Cloudflare Germany GmbH v. Conor Mcknight)
| Resolution Date | July 02, 2019 |
| Issuing Organization | WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center |
| Decision | Transfer |
| Dominio | Country domains |
The Complainants are Cloudflare, Inc., United States of America and Cloudflare Germany GmbH, Germany, self-represented.
The Respondent is Conor Mcknight, United Kingdom, self-represented.
The Registry of the disputed domain name [cloudflare.eu] is the European Registry for Internet Domains (“EURid” or the “Registry”). The registrar of the disputed domain name is TLD Registrar Solutions Ltd (the “Registrar”).
The Complaint was filed with the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center (the “Center”) on May 7, 2019. On May 10, 2019, the Center transmitted by email to the Registry a request for registrar verification in connection with the disputed domain name. On May 16, 2019, the Registry transmitted by email to the Center its verification response confirming that the Respondent is listed as the registrant and providing the contact details. The Complainants filed an amended Complaint on May 22, 2019.
The Center verified that the Complaint together with the amended Complaint satisfied the formal requirements of the .eu Alternative Dispute Resolution Rules (the “ADR Rules”) and the World Intellectual Property Organization Supplemental Rules for .eu Alternative Dispute Resolution Rules (the “Supplemental Rules”).
In accordance with the ADR Rules, Paragraph B(2), the Center formally notified the Respondent of the Complaint, and the proceedings commenced on May 24, 2019. In accordance with the ADR Rules, Paragraph B(3)(a), the due date for Response was July 9, 2019. The Response was filed with the Center on May 25 and 26, 2019. The Center verified whether the Response together with the amendment to the Response satisfied the formal requirements of the ADR Rules and the Supplemental Rules. In accordance with the ADR Rules, Paragraph B(3)(b), the Center sent a notification that the Response was administratively deficient on May 27, 2019. The due date for curing the deficiencies of the Response was June 3, 2019. The Respondent did not amend the Response and did not cure its deficiencies. In accordance with ADR Rules, Paragraph B(3)(f), the Center notified the Parties of the Respondent's default on June 4, 2019.
The Center appointed Assen Alexiev as the sole panelist in this matter on June 21, 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 ADR Rules, Paragraph B(5).
The Complainant Cloudflare, Inc. is the owner of the European Union trademark CLOUDFLARE with registration No. 009919275, registered on October 13, 2011 for goods and services in International Classes 9 and 42 (the “CLOUDFLARE trademark”).
The disputed domain name was registered on January 31, 2013. It resolves to an inactive Facebook webpage.
The Complainants submit that the Respondent registered the disputed domain name on January 31, 2013, at which point it had been a paying customer of the Complainants for years and had knowledge of the CLOUDFLARE trademark.
The Complainants further submit that on March 14-18, 2019, the Complainant Cloudflare, Inc. approached the Respondent with an offer to purchase the disputed domain name at the Respondent’s cost in an attempt to reach an amicable settlement. The Respondent responded with an offer to transfer the disputed domain name to the Complainant Cloudflare, Inc. in exchange for free services by the Complainant. This was rejected by the Complainant Cloudflare, Inc., which reiterated its offer to pay the Respondent its costs related to the disputed domain name. The Respondent then replied by asking GBP 100,000.
The Complainants state that the disputed domain name is identical to the CLOUDFLARE trademark, as it consists of the same standard characters.
According to the Complainants, the...
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