Decisión del Panel Administrativo nº DIE2020-0004 of WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center, September 08, 2020 (case Commission for Communications Regulation v. Metodi Darzev，Tool Domain OOD)

• Resolution Date: September 08, 2020
• Issuing Organization: WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center
• Decision: Transfer
• Dominio: Irlanda (.ie)

WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center

ADMINISTRATIVE PANEL DECISION

Commission for Communications Regulation v. Metodi Darzev，Tool Domain OOD

Case No. DIE2020-0004

1. The Parties

The Complainant is Commission for Communications Regulation, Ireland, represented by Mason Hayes & Curran, Ireland.

The Registrant is Metodi Darzev, Tool Domain OOD, Bulgaria.

2. The Domain Name and Registrar

The disputed domain name [askcomreg.ie] is registered with IE Domain Registry Limited.

3. Procedural History

The Complaint was filed with the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center (the “Center”) on July 7, 2020. On July 7, 2020, the Center transmitted by email to IE Domain Registry Limited a request for registrar verification in connection with the domain name at issue. On July 8, 2020, IE Domain Registry Limited transmitted by email to the Center its verification response confirming that the Registrant is listed as the registrant and providing the contact details for the administrative, billing, and technical contact. The Center verified that the Complaint satisfied the formal requirements of the .IE Dispute Resolution Policy (the “IEDR Policy”), the WIPO Dispute Resolution Rules of Procedure for .IE Domain Name Registrations (the “IEDR Rules”), and the WIPO Center Supplemental Rules for .IE Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “IEDR Supplemental Rules”).

In accordance with the IEDR Rules, paragraphs 2.1 and 4.1, the Center formally notified the Registrant of the Complaint, and the proceedings commenced on July 9, 2020. In accordance with the IEDR Rules, the due date for Response was August 7, 2020. The Registrant did not submit any response. Accordingly, the Center notified the Registrant’s default on August 10, 2020.

The Center appointed Adam Taylor as the sole panelist in this matter on August 19, 2020. 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 IEDR Rules.

4. Factual Background

The Complainant, which was established in 2002, is the statutory body responsible for the regulation of the electronic communications sector (including telecommunications, broadcasting, and premium rate services) in the Republic of Ireland.

Since 2002, the Complainant has used the abbreviated version of its name, “ComReg”, to identify itself including in booklets, reports, studies, advertisements, and stationery / branded items. The Complainant has spent EUR 10,000 marketing the name.

The Complainant operates its main website at “www.comreg.ie”.

In 2004, the Complainant registered the disputed domain name and used it for a website designed to provide consumer-friendly information about the sectors which the Complainant regulates. During 2015 and 2016, the website averaged over 300,000 visitors per year. The website is linked to from approximately 17,000 external websites including those of Irish governmental and other official bodies.

The Complainant inadvertently failed to renew the disputed domain name and it was registered by the Registrant on November 23, 2018.

As of June 17, 2020, the disputed domain name resolved to a website branded with name “askcomreg.ie” and, underneath, the words: “Communications Regulation”. There then follows what purports to be a blog about...