The Complainant is Licensing IP International S.A.R.L. of Luxembourg City, Luxembourg, represented by SafeNames Ltd., United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
The Respondent is Nanci Nette of Los Angeles, California, United States of America. 2. The Domain Name and Registrar
The disputed domain name is registered with N, Inc. (N LLC) (the "Registrar"). 3. Procedural History
The Complaint was filed with the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center (the "Center") on June 2, 2017. On June 2, 2017, the Center transmitted by email to the Registrar a request for registrar verification in connection with the disputed domain name. On June 2, 2017, the Registrar transmitted by email to the Center its verification response confirming that the Respondent is listed as the registrant and providing the contact details.
The Center verified that the 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 June 13, 2017. In accordance with the Rules, paragraph 5, the due date for Response was July 3, 2017. The Respondent did not submit any response. Accordingly, the Center notified the Respondent's default on July 4, 2017.
The Center appointed Mario Soerensen Garcia as the sole panelist in this matter on July 11, 2017. 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 Complainant is Licensing IP International S.A.R.L., a company of Luxembourg ("MindGeek"), employing over 1,000 staff, which operates the brands REDTUBE, PORNHUB, and YOUPORN and licenses the corresponding domain names and trademarks. Each of the brands is established worldwide and has its own website: , , and , which are visited by over 100 million people daily.
The Complainant's REDTUBE brand is a paid streaming service launched in 2007 that consists of adult content with a selection of symmetrical boxes, each one showing a scene from an adult video. REDTUBE has 221,000 and 112,000 followers on their Twitter accounts, 743,000 on their Instagram accounts and 1,595 subscribers on their YouTube channel.
The Complainant owns several trademark registrations around the world for mark REDTUBE, including the US trademark registration dated from 2010 (registration number 3.843.119, granted on August 31, 2010).
The domain name was registered on June 25, 2015 and resolves to various websites related to dating and adult content. 5. Parties' Contentions A. Complainant
The Complainant states that it owns trademark registrations in several jurisdictions for REDTUBE and that the domain name is abusive and confusingly similar to its trademark.
The Complainant alleges that the extension ".tv" is irrelevant when comparing the domain name and the REDTUBE trademark and is not capable of distinguishing the association with the Complainant's mark. The Complainant adds that the word "HD", included in the relevant part of the domain name, is the abbreviation of "high definition" and since this refers to the quality of picture on a television or computer screen, it reinforces the association with the Complainant's mark.
The Complainant argues that the Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in the domain name, that it is not known by the Complainant and that it has not acquired any trademark rights related to the domain name. In addition, the Respondent has a portfolio of over 22,000 domain names, many of them comprising words related to adult content, which shows that the Respondent is aware of the REDTUBE brand.
The Complainant says that the domain name resolves to a various websites, including those related to dating and adult content and that such use leads Internet users to third parties websites, with the purpose of generating income. In addition, the Complainant alleges that the use of the domain name to take advantage by redirecting Internet users to other websites does not create a legitimate interest as the Respondent is still misleading Internet users.
The Complainant reinforces that any individual who has access to the Internet can find the REDTUBE trademarks on public databases, which means that the Respondent knew or should have known the REDTUBE mark at the time of the domain name registration.
Finally, the Complainant requests the transfer of the domain name. B. Respondent
The Respondent did not reply to the Complainant's contentions. 6. Discussion and Findings
As per paragraph 4(a) of the Policy, the Complainant must prove that:
(i) the disputed domain name is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in which the Complainant has rights;
(ii) the Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the disputed domain name; and
(iii) the disputed domain name has been registered and is being used in bad faith. A. Identical or Confusingly Similar
The evidence presented demonstrates that the Complainant is the owner of the trademark REDTUBE in various jurisdictions. Also, the Complainant registered its own domain name and has been using its website "www.". The Panel finds that the Complainant has trademark rights for purposes of the Policy.
The domain name comprises the Complainant's trademark REDTUBE prominently. The addition of the term "hd" and the extension ".tv" do not avoid confusing similarity between the domain name and the Complainant's trademark, since the most visible part of the domain name remains the mark REDTUBE. The inclusion of the descriptive term "hd" (meaning: high definition) and the extension ".tv" (which means "Tuvalu" but may also be interpreted as "television") can make reference to television / screens and, consequently, more association with the Complainant's mark.
Therefore, the Panel finds that paragraph 4(a)(i) of the Policy has been proved by the Complainant, i.e., the disputed domain name is confusingly similar to the Complainant's trademark B. Rights or Legitimate Interests
The Respondent has not submitted a response to the Complaint.
There is no evidence that the Respondent has any authorization to use the Complainant's trademark or to register domain names containing the trademark REDTUBE.
There is no evidence that the Respondent is commonly known by the domain name.
There is no evidence that the Respondent is making a legitimate noncommercial or fair use of the domain name or that before any notice of the dispute the Respondent has made 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. Instead, there is evidence that the domain name resolves to various websites with the purpose of capturing and redirecting Internet users to other websites, which does not create a legitimate interest, as the Respondent is still misleading Internet users.
Based on the evidence in the Complaint, the Panel finds that the use of the domain name, which incorporates the Complainant's trademark, does not correspond to a bona fide use under the Policy.
For the above reasons, the Panel finds that the condition of paragraph 4(a)(ii) of the Policy has been satisfied, i.e., the Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in the disputed domain name. C. Registered and Used in Bad Faith
The trademark REDTUBE is registered by the Complainant in many jurisdictions around the world and was already well established before the registration of the disputed domain name.
The disputed domain name resolves to display videos of adult content, comprises the REDTUBE trademark in a prominent way and the Respondent owns over 22,000 domain names, many of them featuring words related to adult content. Therefore, the Respondent obviously knew of the Complainant's mark when it registered the domain name.
The Respondent also demonstrates bad faith as a result of attracting Internet users for commercial gain by redirecting the domain name to various third party websites, including those related to dating and adult content.
Therefore, this Panel finds that the Respondent's intention of taking undue advantage of the trademark REDTUBE as described in paragraph 4(b)(iv) of the Policy has been demonstrated.
For the above reasons, the Panel finds that the condition of paragraph 4(a)(iii) of the Policy has been satisfied, i.e., the disputed domain name has been registered and is 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 disputed domain name be transferred to the Complainant.
Mario Soerensen Garcia
Sole Panelist
Date: July 19, 2017
Full & Egal Universal Law Academy