SIIA Says U.S. Businesses Should Register with ICANN Trademark Clearinghouse to Protect Themselves from Intellectual Property Theft
For Immediate Release:
SIIA Communications Contact: Laura Greenback, 202.789.4461,
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SIIA Says U.S. Businesses Should Register with ICANN Trademark Clearinghouse to Protect Themselves from Intellectual Property Theft
Trade Association Says gTLD Expansion Still Poses Significant Risks for Trademark Owners
WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 25, 2013) – The Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), the principal trade association for the software and digital content industries, today urged businesses to register with the Trademark Clearinghouse that is about to open as part of the process of expanding the number of top-level Internet domains (TLDs). The Clearinghouse, which launches Tuesday, offers all trademark owners the opportunity to register their brand names in order to protect them from being claimed by others as domain names.
“As the process of expanding top level domains moves forward, companies face an enormous threat of having their trademarked names stolen,” said Keith Kupferschmid, general counsel and vice president of IP policy and enforcement for SIIA. “The Trademark Clearinghouse provides a way of mitigating the risk of trademark left. Though not guaranteed to protect your trademark from cybersquatting, registering with the Trademark Clearinghouse is the first critical step for trademark owners to protect their brands. Failure to register with the Clearinghouse makes it easier for thieves to purchase a domain that uses a trademarked name – essentially stealing that trademark from its rightful owner.”
The Trademark Clearinghouse is part of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) process of exponentially expanding the number of TLDs from the existing 20 presently in operation (such as .com, .net and .org). It is widely anticipated that the first new TLDs will “go live” in the third quarter of this year. Once this happens TLDs can begin to accept registrations for second-level domain names (e.g., siia.net), which could include anything – including a company’s valuable trademarks.
Trademark owners must record their marks in the Trademark Clearinghouse in order to qualify for the new trademark protection mechanisms, including: (1) a “Trademark Claims Service,” which notifies potential domain name registrants of corresponding trademark rights; and (2) a “Sunrise” registration period of at least 30 days in which eligible trademark owners can obtain a domain name registration for their marks prior to launch of the TLD.
“The good news,” Kupferschmid continued, “is that the process of registering is easy, and once done, offers significant protection for the trademark owner. We recommend that, once the Clearinghouse opens, companies move quickly to register their marks. With so much at stake, companies don’t want to risk running into problems with the process or missing critical deadlines.”
About SIIA
SIIA is the leading association representing the software and digital content industries. SIIA represents approximately 700 member companies worldwide that develop software and digital information content. Information technology (IT) and software security are critical issues to SIIA’s members, many of whom strive to develop safe, secure and state-of the-art products that effectively serve their commercial and government customers alike, while protecting their intellectual property. For more information, visit www.siia.net.