No Cybersquatting: Verizon Wins $33 Million Judgment
A federal court in the Northern District of California has issued a default ruling ordering San Francisco-based OnlineNIC to pay Verizon $33.15 million. According to documents, OnlineNIC had unlawfully registered at least 663 domain names that were either "identical to or confusingly similar to Verizon trademarks."
The court ruled that OnlineNIC's bad-faith registrations of Verizon-related domain names were "designed to attract Web users who were seeking to access Verizon's legitimate Web sites." The court calculated Verizon's award based on $50,000 per domain name.
Neither OnlineNIC nor counsel representing the company appeared in court to fight the allegations.
"This case should send a clear message and server to deter cybersquatters who continue to run businesses for the primary purpose of misleading customers," Verizon vice president and associate general counsel Sarah Deutsch said in a statement. "Verizon intends to continue to take all steps necessary to protect our brand and customers from Internet frauds and abuses."