The owner of TicketSMS.com and TicketSMS.net registered the domain names in 2009. TicketSms s.r.l. attempted to acquire them through a UDRP despite only using the TICKET SMS brand since 2015.
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They claimed that the Respondent was a "cybersquatter" because he possessed 80 domain names. However, the WIPO panelist rejected their claim, stating that the registration date of the domain names proved there was no bad faith involved. Additionally, the Complainants were found guilty of Reverse Domain Name Hijacking as they knew the Respondent couldn't have targeted them in 2009. The panel concluded that the Complaint was brought in bad faith and constitutes an abuse of the administrative proceeding. The final decision was to deny the transfer of the domain names and find RDNH.
The case was between TicketSms s.r.l. and Mr Andrea Vitali (Complainants) represented by Studio Legale Antonio Gallo, Italy, and Franklin Iziren (Respondent) represented by Adlex Solicitors, United Kingdom.
The disputed domain names are registered with Instra Corporation Pty Ltd. The complaint satisfied the formal requirements of the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy, and the proceedings started on January 31, 2023.
The due date for Response was March 7, 2023, which was later extended to March 11, 2023, and the Response was filed on March 8, 2023.
On March 29, 2023, Assen Alexiev was appointed as the sole panelist in the case and the Panel finds it was properly constituted. The panel submitted a Statement of Acceptance and Declaration of Impartiality and Independence as required by the Center to comply with the Rules, paragraph 7.
The First Complainant, established in 2017, operates a digital ticketing system certified by SIAE and the Italian Revenue Agency. The Second Complainant is a founder and legal representative of the First Complainant. They own the TICKETSMS trademark with registrations in the EU and the UK, and the domain name ticketsms.it registered in 2015.
The Respondent registered the disputed domain names ticketsms.com and ticketsms.net in 2009 and they currently lead to parked webpages. In 2014, ticketsms.com redirected to clickit4tickets.co.uk, owned by the Respondent. The Respondent also owns the United Kingdom trademark TICKET SMS SIMPLE MANAGED SOLUTION and ticketsms.co.uk.
The Complainants argue that the disputed domain names are identical to their trademark and that the Respondent has no legitimate interest in them. They claim that the Respondent has not used them to distinguish goods or services on the market, and the purpose of their registration was only for profit. They note that the Respondent's statement in an email shows he is a cybersquatter.