Lost a WIPO case against AQI for domains - iso9000directory.com, iso9000conference.com, iso9000institute.com and iso9000standards.com.

A three-member World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) panel, has refused to transfer four domain names that include the phrase 'ISO9000' to ISO, in the International Organization for Standardization v AQI case.

ISO filed a complaint with WIPO requesting the transfer of the four domain names - 'iso9000directory.com', 'iso9000conference.com', 'iso9000institute' and 'iso9000standards.com'. The panel on finding, accepted that AQI had regularly and widely used the domain name 'iso9000directory.com' for the website of the ISO 9000 conference until 2003 and domain names 'iso9000conference.com' and 'iso9000institute' in its email addresses. AQI was not, however, able to justify its use of the 'iso9000standards.com' domain name.

The panel found that ISO was aware of the use for 10 years, as it had been in regular contact with AQI, but did not raise objection. ISO was unable to demonstrate that its policy statement with regard to the use of the ISO name on the Internet was already published on its website when AQI registered the disputed domain names and neither showed that AQI had registered and was using any of the domain names in bad faith. The panel was therefore satisfied that AQI had legitimate interests in these domain names and accordingly, refused to transfer the domain names.