TELECOM Digest OnLine - Sorted: Saint-Exupery Estate Wins Cybersquatting Case


Saint-Exupery Estate Wins Cybersquatting Case


Lisa Minter (lisa_minter2001@yahoo.com)
Fri, 24 Jun 2005 12:56:01 -0500

The literary estate of French author Antoine de Saint-Exupery on
Friday won a cybersquatting case to evict a Virgin Islands operator
whose Web Site sells memorabilia linked to the creator of "The Little
Prince."

Arbitrators ruled La Societe Civile pour l'Oeuvre et la Memoire
d'Antoine de Saint Exupery-Succession Saint Exupery, set up by
relatives to manage his literary estate, had proved The Holding
Company had no right to three disputed domain names.

The Holding Company, which registered the domain names, had used a
"valid, registered trademark in a commercial context, i.e. with the
intent to generate commissions on sales of books and other memorabilia
concerning Antoine de Saint-Exupery. This does not constitute bona
fide use," the ruling said.

Saint-Exupery, a pilot whose fable "The Little Prince" is considered a
classic of flight, love and loneliness, disappeared in July 1944
during a wartime aerial reconnaissance mission.

His literary estate said it was authorized by the author's heirs to be
the sole owner and manager of trademarks and other intellectual
property rights tied to his work, life and name.

The three neutral arbitrators were named by the U.N. World
Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) whose arbitration center
resolves disputes in a low-cost, fast-track procedure.

Ownership of the domain names is transferred within 10 days unless the
loser launches a court case challenging the decision.

The domain names are (antoinedesaintexupery.com), and
(saintexupery.com).

J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter children's books, and the
estate of J.R.R. Tolkien, late author of the "Lord of the Rings"
trilogy, have also won cases at WIPO. ; Geneva Newsroom tel. 41-22-733
3831)

Copyright 2005 Reuters Limited.

NOTE: For more telecom/internet/networking/computer news from the
daily media, check out our feature 'Telecom Digest Extra' each day at
http://telecom-digest.org/td-extra/more-news.html . Hundreds of new
articles daily.

Post Followup Article Use your browser's quoting feature to quote article into reply
Go to Next message: Lisa Minter: "ISPs and Telcos Attempt to Stop Public Broadband"
Go to Previous message: Lisa Minter: "Australia Outlaws Using Internet to Incite Suicide"
TELECOM Digest: Home Page