France, leader in the fight against domain name cybersquatting
France is the second most active country in the world against domain name cybersquatting, according to the 2024 annual report published by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
In 2024, trademark holders in 133 countries filed 6,168 complaints under the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) and the national variants of country-code Top Level Domains (ccTLDs).
This figure is lower than the cybersquatting total for 2023 (6,192 complaints), but remains stable.
2024 is the second busiest year for domain name disputes at WIPO since 1999, when WIPO created the UDRP.
Number of UDRP complaints to WIPO per year. Souce : https://www.wipo.int/
According to WIPO, these statistics underline ” the continuing importance of domain names in the global intellectual property and e-commerce landscape “. Thus, ” these high figures demonstrate the continued relevance and effectiveness of the UDRP in the fight against cybersquatting and fraudulent activities involving domain names (e.g. phishing or false invoices) “.
As in previous years, the cases filed cover almost every sector of activity. The main sectors represented include retail, banking and finance, biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, Internet and IT, and fashion.
For WIPO, ” this reflects the considerable impact of domain name disputes on various sectors of the economy “.
France, 2nd most active country against cybersquatting
The USA, France and the UK continue to be the main countries filing cases. U.S. companies filed 2,157 complaints in 2024, followed by France with 1,324 cases. The UK is much further behind, with three times fewer complaints than France.
The top three are Switzerland, Germany and Sweden.
WIPO cites Fenix International (OnlyFans), LEGO, Meta Platforms (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp) and cigarette manufacturer Philip Morris among the main plaintiffs.
French companies also feature in the top 10. Carrefour, Sanofi, Sodexo and Michelin are among the French-registered companies most active in the fight against cybersquatting.
These companies have historically been very active in the fight against cybersquatting – see our previous article.
In decision D2024-1707, Michelin won an important victory against 138 disputed domain names. Although held by 17 different registrants, Michelin proved that there were sufficient commonalities (same website content, same false contact details…) to demonstrate that the domain names were at least under common control.
Law firms and registrars defend France against cybersquatting
Among the top 10 plaintiffs’ representatives are several international registrars specializing in brand protection. WIPO points to the activities of ABION, CSC Digital Brand Services (representing LEGO) and SafeNames, for example.
It also includes French registrars among its legal representatives of brands such as IP Twins and Nameshield.
French patent attorneys such as Aeropage and Dreyfus & associés are also present.
In this market for legal representation of trademarks under the UDRP, we can also cite the significant activity in France of Coblence Avocats, Fidal, Germain Maureau, In Concreto, Lynde et Associés, MIIP – Made In IP, Plasseraud IP and Scan Avocats.
Few cybersquatters resident in France
While France was involved in 1,324 cases, it was only on the other side of the fence in 353 complaints.
The USA is the country with the most alleged cybersquatters (1,814 decisions). The other countries are China (831), France, India (253) and the UK (252).
WIPO domain name disputes were handled in 18 languages. English is the predominant language (91%). However, French is the second language used (3%). Spanish (2.3%), Chinese (0.9%), Portuguese, Swedish, German, Dutch, Turkish and Ukrainian make up the top 10 languages.
85 country extensions offer dispute resolution services via WIPO
In 2024, the WIPO Center began accepting cases for new country extensions.
These include .AD (Andorra), .CV (Cape Verde), .LV (Latvia) and .RW (Rwanda). WIPO also received its first filings and decision for .SN (Senegal). The WIPO Center now provides dispute resolution services to over 85 ccTLDs.
Country extensions covered by the UDRP procedure or a variation in 2024 at WIPO. Souce : https://www.wipo.int/
Explosion in the number of cases rendered in .AI (Artificial Intelligence)
In 2024, the WIPO Center noted an increase in domain name dispute filings for the .AI (Anguilla) “ccTLD”.
Boosted by the democratization of artificial intelligence, .AI is on a roll. More than 80 cases have been filed for .AI domain names.
A case has targeted the famous SAP business software brand(DAI2024-0053 <sap.ai>).
This domain name previously belonged to SAP from 2017 to 2023. However, it inadvertently expired, at which point it was acquired by a new registrant. Arguing that the domain name had substantial generic value independent of the complainant, and highlighting the growing popularity of .AI domain names and acronyms, the registrant claimed that it was not targeting SAP. Nevertheless, the WIPO Panel found that all the circumstances of the case indicate that the Respondent was clearly aware of and targeting the Complainant and its famous trademark SAP in the .AI ccTLD.
.AI is now the second most registered domain name in the world. It is only preceded by .CO (Colombia), another extension presented as an alternative to .COM. Then there’s .CC (Cocos Islands), .ES (Spain), .CN (China), .NL (Kingdom of the Netherlands), .SE (Sweden), .IO (British Indian Ocean Territory), .BR (Brazil) and .EU (European Union).
Extensions countries with the most WIPO disputes in 2024. Souce : https://www.wipo.int/
In 2024, the number of “UDRP” complaints managed by WIPO against domain name cybersquatting was stable. France remains very active in putting a stop to abuses via this dispute resolution procedure. The UDRP procedure celebrated its 25th anniversary last year.