The Complainant is La Plateforme, France, represented by Cabinet Lavoix, France.
The Respondent is Withheld for Privacy Purposes, Privacy service provided by Withheld for Privacy ehf, Iceland / Fabrice Armand, France. 2. The Domain Name and Registrar
The disputed domain name The Complaint was filed with the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center (the “Center”) on May 11, 2021. On May 11, 2021, the Center transmitted by email to the Registrar a request for registrar verification in connection with the Domain Name. On May 14, 2021, the Registrar transmitted by email to the Center its verification response disclosing registrant and contact information for the Domain Name which differed from the named Respondent and contact information in the Complaint. The Center sent an email communication to the Complainant on May 14, 2021, providing the registrant and contact information disclosed by the Registrar, and inviting the Complainant to submit an amendment to the Complaint. The Complainant filed an amended Complaint on May 18, 2021. The Center verified that the Complaint together with the amended Complaint satisfied the formal requirements of the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Policy” or “UDRP”), the Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Rules”), and the WIPO Supplemental Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Supplemental Rules”). In accordance with the Rules, paragraphs 2 and 4, the Center formally notified the Respondent of the Complaint, and the proceedings commenced on May 19, 2021. In accordance with the Rules, paragraph 5, the due date for Response was June 8, 2021. The Respondent did not submit any response. Accordingly, the Center notified the Respondent’s default on June 14, 2021. The Center appointed Denoyelle, Vincent as the sole panelist in this matter on June 18, 2021. The Panel finds that it was properly constituted. The Panel has submitted the Statement of Acceptance and Declaration of Impartiality and Independence, as required by the Center to ensure compliance with the Rules, paragraph 7. 4. Factual Background The following facts are based on the submissions in the Complaint and the Annexes to the Complaint. The Complainant is a French company specialized in building material wholesale and related services. The Complainant is the owner of several trade marks for LA PLATEFORME including the following: - European Union Trade Mark LA PLATEFORME (word) No. 000308148, filed on July 10, 1996 and registered on March 22, 2000. The Complainant is also the owner of several domain names reflecting its trade mark. The Domain Name was registered on February 6, 2021. The Domain Name resolves to a Registrar parking page displaying pay-per-click (“PPC”) links. 5. Parties’ Contentions A. Complainant The Complainant contends that the Domain Name is confusingly similar to the LA PLATEFORME trade mark in which the Complainant has rights as the Domain Name incorporates the entire LA PLATEFORME trade mark followed by the term “-fr” (a hyphen and the country code Top-Level Domain (‘ccTLD’) for France) and that such addition to the Domain Name does not prevent the likelihood of confusion between the Domain Name and the Complainant’s trade mark. The Complainant asserts that the Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the Domain Name. The Complainant submits that the use of the Domain Name to point to a parking page with PPC links that direct Internet users to other websites that are in direct competition with the Complainant’s activity cannot constitute use of the Domain Name in connection with a bona fide offering of goods or services. The Complainant contends that the Respondent impersonated the Complainant through several emails associated with the Domain Name and that this cannot be considered a fair use of the Domain Name. In addition, the Complainant asserts that no license or authorisation has been granted to the Respondent to register or use the Domain Name. Finally, the Complainant submits that the Respondent has not acquired any rights in the Domain Name and is not commonly known by the Domain Name. The Complainant points to the overall circumstances of the present case to contend that the Respondent has registered the Domain Name with full knowledge of the Complainant’s trade mark and in bad faith. The Complainant points to the use of the Domain Name to (i) direct to a parking page with PPC links that direct Internet users to other websites that are in direct competition with the Complainant’s activity and (ii) impersonate the Complainant, as a clear indication that the Respondent is also using the Domain Name in bad faith to intentionally attempt to attract, for commercial gain, Internet users to its website or other on-line location, by creating a likelihood of confusion with the Complainant’s mark as to the source, sponsorship, affiliation, or endorsement of the Respondent’s website or location or of a product or service on the Respondent’s website or location. Finally, the Complainant points to a previous UDRP decision which would seem to involve the Respondent. B. Respondent The Respondent did not reply to the Complainant’s contentions. 6. Discussion and Findings In order to prevail the Complainant must substantiate that the three elements of paragraph 4(a) of the Policy have been met, namely: (i) the Domain Name is identical or confusingly similar to a trade mark or service mark in which the Complainant has rights; and In the case of default by a party, as is the case here, paragraph 14(b) of the Rules makes it clear that if a party, in the absence of exceptional circumstances, does not comply with any provision of, or requirement under, the Rules or any request from the Panel, the Panel shall draw such inferences therefrom as it considers appropriate. In the absence of a Response from the Respondent whereby the Respondent did not object to any of the contentions from the Complainant, the Panel will have to base its decision on the basis of the Complaint and supporting Annexes. A. Identical or Confusingly Similar In light of the evidence provided by the Complainant, the Panel is satisfied that the Complainant has substantiated that it holds valid trade mark rights in LA PLATEFORME, which is reproduced in its entirety in the Domain Name. The second point that has to be considered is whether the Domain Name is identical or confusingly similar to the trade mark LA PLATEFORME in which the Complainant has rights. At the second level, the Domain Name incorporates the Complainant’s LA PLATEFORME trade mark in its entirety with the addition of the term “-fr” (a hyphen and the country code Top Level Domain (ccTLD) for France). The term added to the Domain Name does not prevent a finding of confusing similarity between the Complainant’s trade mark and the Domain Name. Then there is the addition of the generic Top-Level Domain (“gTLD”) “.com”. As is generally accepted, the addition of a gTLD such as “.com” is merely a technical registration requirement and as such is typically disregarded under the first element of confusing similarity test. Thus, the Panel finds that the Domain Name is identical or confusingly similar to a trade mark or service mark in which the Complainant has rights. B. Rights or Legitimate Interests Paragraph 4(c) of the Policy sets out relevant circumstances that could demonstrate that a respondent has rights or legitimate interests in a domain name, namely: Any of the following circumstances, in particular but without limitation, if found by the Panel to be proved based on its evaluation of all evidence presented, shall demonstrate [the respondent’s] rights or legitimate interests to the domain name for purposes of paragraph 4(a)(ii): (i) before any notice to [the respondent] of the dispute, [the respondent’s] use of, or demonstrable preparations to use, the domain name or a name corresponding to the domain name in connection with a bona fide offering of goods or services; or (ii) [the respondent] (as an individual, business, or other organization) ha[s] been commonly known by the domain name, even if [the respondent] ha[s] acquired no trade mark or service mark rights; or (iii) [the respondent] is making a legitimate non-commercial or fair use of the domain name, without intent for commercial gain to misleadingly divert consumers or to tarnish the trade mark or service mark at issue. Numerous previous panels have found under the UDRP that once the Complainant makes a prima facie showing that the Respondent does not have rights or legitimate interests in the domain name, the burden of production shifts to the Respondent to rebut the showing by providing evidence of its rights or interests in the domain name. Having reviewed the Complainant’s assertions and evidence, the Panel is satisfied that the Complainant has made a prima facie showing that the Respondent lacks rights or legitimate interests in the Domain Name. The Complainant has stated that it does not know the Respondent and that it has not licensed or otherwise authorised the Respondent to make any use of its trade mark. There is no indication that the Respondent is commonly known by the Domain Name. The use of the Domain Name to (i) direct to a parking page with PPC links that redirect Internet users to other websites that are in direct competition with the Complainant’s activity and (ii) impersonate the Complainant, cannot be considered bona fide, legitimate or fair. Thus, the Panel finds that the Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the Domain Name. C. Registered and Used in Bad Faith Paragraph 4(b) of the Policy sets out a number of relevant non-exhaustive circumstances, which can be deemed to constitute evidence of registration and use of a domain name in bad faith, namely: (i) circumstances indicating that [the respondent has] registered or acquired [a disputed] domain name primarily for the purpose of selling, renting, or otherwise transferring the domain name registration to the complainant who is the owner of the trade mark or service mark or to a competitor of that complainant, for valuable consideration in excess of [the respondent’s] documented out-of-pocket costs directly related to the domain name; or (ii) [the respondent has] registered the domain name in order to prevent the owner of the trade mark or service mark from reflecting the mark in a corresponding domain name, provided that [the respondent has] engaged in a pattern of such conduct; or (iii) [the respondent has] registered the domain name primarily for the purpose of disrupting the business of a competitor; or (iv) by using the domain name, [the respondent has] intentionally attempted to attract, for commercial gain, Internet users to [the respondent’s] website or other on-line location, by creating a likelihood of confusion with the complainant’s mark as to the source, sponsorship, affiliation, or endorsement of [the respondent’s] website or location or of a product or service on [the respondent’s] website or location. Given the circumstances described in the Complaint and the documentary evidence provided by the Complainant, the Panel finds that the Domain Name was registered in bad faith. The Domain Name reproduces the exact LA PLATEFORME trade mark of the Complainant and this cannot be a coincidence given the overall circumstances of the present case including: (i) the goodwill and reputation of the Complainant’s LA PLATEFORME trade mark especially in France where the Respondent appears to be based, (ii) the fact that the Domain Name was registered relatively recently and many years after the registration of the trade mark LA PLATEFORME and, (iii) the choice of term added to the Complainant’s trade mark which indicates that the Respondent’s intention in registering the Domain Name was to target the domestic market of the Complainant. Thus, the Panel finds that the Domain Name was registered in bad faith. As for use of the Domain Name in bad faith, given the circumstances described in the Complaint, the evidence provided by the Complainant and the brief verification carried out by the Panel of the website associated with the Domain Name, the Panel considers that the Domain Name is used in bad faith. The use of the Domain Name to point to a Registrar parking page with PPC links targeting the Complainant’s sector clearly demonstrates the Respondent’s bad faith in using the Domain Name. In addition, the Complainant has provided evidence that the Domain Name was used in connection with fraudulent emails impersonating the Complainant and reproducing the Complainant’s logo and trade marks to deceive Internet users. This constitutes very persuasive evidence of the Respondent’s bad faith use of the Domain Name. The fact that the Respondent chose not to object to the Complainant’s assertions can only reinforce the Panel’s view that the Domain Name is used in bad faith. Thus, the Panel finds that the Domain Name has been registered and is also being used in bad faith. 7. Decision For the foregoing reasons, in accordance with paragraphs 4(i) of the Policy and 15 of the Rules, the Panel orders that the Domain Name Vincent Denoyelle
(ii) the Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the Domain Name; and
(iii) the Domain Name has been registered and is being used in bad faith.
Sole Panelist
Date: July 2, 2021
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