Trademark Help!!

[scriblesvurt]

Tademark Help!!

I just recived this by e-mail.

What are my options now and what should I do??!!

*************************************************

Mr Blakeman

RE: Transco-uk.com

> I have been notified of your registration of the above domain name. >
TranscoTrrrrr Transco is the trading name of one of our key UK businesses
and we would be > concerned if you were intending to use this domain name
for a business which > might operate in similar trademark classes.
>
> I would very much appreciate an indication of your intentions with this
domain name.
>

 

[Tippy]

Did you have any development/usage plans for the name?

Mike

 

[scriblesvurt]

No,

I was hoping that It would get alot of traffic so I could sell it on.

 

[slipondajimmy]

well i did a quick search and there are alot of different companies with the name transco. From office supply to gas transporters. In some cases like this i tend to look into a domain a little before i go and buy it . But that is just me .

I guess what you could do is email the person asking what services their company provides because it is not clear in the email . Then assure him/her that the domain will not be used to promote and goods or services that would take away from there company.

also the word "transco" is very generic in my opinion. Just my 2 cents. Not a lawyer here but seems about what i would do .

Good luck

 

[Jeanco]

I think slipondajimmy put it well.

 

[dnslife]

before you reply to this guy i would consider setting it up on a server and start using it. Put something like any similarity to any other website is purely coincidental. or some type of disclaimer.
screen capture the site and timestamp the file. I think this guy might have something shady in mind. He might be the reverse hijacking type. Don't offer to sell it until this guy e-mails you that he is NOT interested in it. Send him a search result page on that word if you do reply to him.

 

[identity_00]

id say "yes I plan on releasing my site in a couple weeks" then
put up an easy site. Or I wouldnt even respond.

 

[CenterPoint]

I think they are referring to this site.

http://www.transco.uk.com

 

[Wilfredo]

Put up a domain reseller site or something just to say you are going to use it for that biz.

Does it get any traffic ?

 

[scriblesvurt]

Yes, thats were then e-mail came from. The New Media Director of that company. Should I offer the name for sale to him?

 

[Anthony]

Originally posted by scriblesvurt
Yes, thats were then e-mail came from. The New Media Director of that company. Should I offer the name for sale to him?

Sure, ask for an offer. But make sure it doesn't sound like you registered the name just to sell it to them. Good luck.

 

[dnslife]

ask him if he would be intersted in leasing it. or sharing the domain name. you could be the postmaster for it or just point the dns info to his servers for a monthly fee. Be sure that he understands that you did have plans for the domain.

 

[Anthony]

Originally posted by dnslife
ask him if he would be intersted in leasing it. or sharing the domain name. you could be the postmaster for it or just point the dns info to his servers for a monthly fee. Be sure that he understands that you did have plans for the domain.

Sounds like sage business advice to me.

 

[scriblesvurt]

update

I recived the following back. Where do I now stand? If i want to ask for more for the name and they decided they want it back and will take me to court. Can they still do that if when the decided to take me I just hand it back?

What should I ask for it? Thanks,

Scribs

"Our position is that we would happily receive the domain name from you at
cost only. You are right to point out that Transco is a widely used company
name globally but less so in the UK. Our research shows that Transco is
very well associated with the Gas emergency service by the public.
Therefore we are always concerned when domains are registered which could
potentially mislead the public in this very important area.

I would hope we could sort this out simply. Please let me know your
position."

 

[Tippy]

Well they say they are willing to buy it at cost.

What you need to do is figure out what it costed you to get the name, $ plus your time = ?

Mike

 

[meljr]

They have offered to buy the name from you, but want it at a fair price. Let them show their cards first if you can. Something like this:

Thanks for your interesting in this domain name. I am sure we can work out somthing that is fair to both of us. As you know, my cost would have to include many overhead items other than just the price of registration. Please let me know what you consider a fair price range for you. Best regards, ect ect ect.

Worth a try!
meljr

 

[DNQuest.com]

I missed this thread earlier, but for future reference, when you receive an email like this one, never imply it is for sale. Always say you are in the early stages of development. And let them make the first move. Otherwise, it could look like you wanted to make a quick sale of the domain (even if that is your intention). Even if it an generic or common domain, try to play it cool.

Good luck.

 

[nirv]

I had nearly an exact same email a few weeks back about a name I manually reg'd. The company mailed me stating they'd just found out about my registration (about 2/3 weeks after I'd got it) and wondered what my plans were for it as it's a trading name of theirs. (it was a .net, think they had every other ext.)

I told them I had no intentions of using it as a business and wasn't aware of the trading name issues (it was parked at the time at Sedo), and only got it as I noticed it may have had some traffic, said that I'd be more than happy to release it for a reasonable fee ($60) to cover my own costs etc. and they were very pleased that I was cooperating and willing to give it up.

Is nearing the final processes of transferring, I've got the money and am happy to have gotten out of what could have been a tricky situation. I sometimes wonder if I could have got more but at the time it wasn't worth pushing for it, and I'm still pretty new to selling/pricing. still 7x markup ain't bad

Just my story anyway, good luck.

 

[wisconsin]

I've sold many trademark domains that I had no ide that they were trademarks before registration... because they were just "Generic English Words".
I always asked for up to $1000. If they really want it, they will pay for it. They know that it would cost them at least $1500 to file a complaint before WIPO or UDRP. Most the time I sold them for $1000 and they were happy with it.

From The Complainant initial email and response to you, it doesn't seem like he/she is a "legalPro".....I have doubts!

Ask for a $1000 ans see their reaction. Don't worry at all!
You have a lot of room there to negotiate with them. They know that if they really want... $1000 is a better deal thatn paying $1500 and having to go thru the process for at least 45 days with no warranties

Remember to always be respectful and friendly when communicating with them.

Good Luck!

 

[Anthony]

Any news about this sale? Did you send them a price?