Nasdaq also filed a complaint with the World Intellectual Property Organization's (WIPO) Arbitration and Mediation Center in accordance with the rules and policies of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers. As part of its complaints, Nasdaq is requesting that the Court and the WIPO's administrative panel issue a decision or directive that the domain names be surrendered by Deltacross Limited and transferred to Nasdaq.
Nasdaq and its parent company, the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), own numerous trademarks and service marks containing "Nasdaq" for various financial products and services. "Nasdaq" has been in continuous use in U.S. commerce since 1968 and is a registered trademark in the United States, the United Kingdom and 38 other countries around the world. As a result, the "Nasdaq" brand has become world famous, associated with products and services originating exclusively with Nasdaq and the NASD.
Nasdaq and the NASD have registered and are using many domain names containing "Nasdaq" in connection with active websites which include content originating from or approved by the organization. These include NASDAQ.COM, NASDAQNEWS.COM, NASDAQTRADER.COM, and NASDAQ-UK.COM. NASDAQ.COM is currently the world's second most popular financial website, receiving over 20 million hits per day.
In 1999, the NASD also announced the creation of Nasdaq Europe, scheduled to launch in late 2000. The Nasdaq Europe website can currently be found at NASDAQ-EUROMARKET.com.
The domain names "NASDAQEUROPE.COM" and "NASDAQEUROPE.NET" were registered by Deltacross Limited with U.S. based Register.com, Inc. Under Register.com's registration agreement, the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy, and the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act, the use of a domain name should not interfere with or infringe upon the rights of any third party and should not be registered for any unlawful purpose.
NASD Chief Legal Officer, Edward Knight asserts, "These domain names were registered and are being used in bad faith, exploiting the vast good will and value Nasdaq and the NASD have created with the "Nasdaq" trademark. In addition, Deltacross' registration of "NASDAQEUROPE.COM" and "NASDAQEUROPE.NET" is particularly harmful given the creation and impending launch of Nasdaq Europe. It directly contravenes Deltacross' assurances that the registration of these domains did not interfere with any known third party rights. We are very concerned that unaffiliated web sites at these domain names will lead to significant confusion on the part of investors."
The Nasdaq Stock Market lists nearly 5,000 companies, has a larger dollar volume, and trades more shares per day than any other U.S. market. Nasdaq is a subsidiary of the NASD, the largest securities-industry, self-regulatory organization in the United States. For more information about Nasdaq, visit the Nasdaq Web site at www.nasdaq.com or the Nasdaq NewsroomSM at www.nasdaqnews.com. For more information on Nasdaq Europe, visit the Nasdaq Europe web site at www.nasdaq-euromarket.com.
