Cape Town - A South Korean cybersquatter who registered the domain name of Broll Property Group has been ejected by the Geneva-based World Intellectual Property Organisation (Wipo).
In May, Broll, with the assistance of law firm Mallinicks, lodged a complaint with Wipo that Jaewook Chang had acquired its domain name, broll.com. Chang's website clearly stated that "this domain is for sale" and offered to sell the domain name to Broll for between $6 000 and $18 000.
Broll contested the matter in accordance with policy and rules on resolving domain name disputes as set out by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers. Wipo's arbitration and mediation centre ruled the cybersquatter had registered and used broll.com in bad faith.
Alexia Christie, a director at Mallinicks, said the case represented a significant victory for Broll and the law firm's information technology department.
"Broll's victory against cybersquatting will go a long way towards assisting South African businesses to protect their interests throughout the world," Christie said.
"In light of the effect of e-commerce on the global economy, this case also clearly represents a levelling of the playing fields in asserting one's rights across international borders."
The domain name is expected to be transferred soon. - Ronnie Morris