First for SA : domain name dispute decided

7th of June saw a first in domain name dispute resolution. For those of you who don’t have a clue what a “domain name dispute” is, I’ll break it down:

Wikipedia defines domain name as “a name that identifies a computer or computers on the internet. By allowing the use of unique alphabetical addresses instead of numeric ones, domain names allow Internet users to more easily find and communicate with web sites and other server-based services.”

Cybersquatting is the act of taking a domain name that resembles a trademark in order to profit from traffic to that address, or with the intention to resell the domain name for a hefty price. This obviously is considered as a trademark infringement.

The recent ruling was an adjudication which ensures that there is a fast, inexpensive procedure of challenging someone else’s registration of a domain name, either because it is abusive (takes unfair advantage of, or is used to infringe, someone else’s rights) or if it is offensive (contrary to good morals, eg. sexually or racially offensive).

Yesterday’s ground breaking ruling by SAIIPL concerned a case where the domain name www.mrplastic.co.za was registered by a
business which was one of several trading as “Mr. Plastic” in the plastics
trade. The closed corporation which originally started trading as “Mr. Plastic” 27 years ago (and which had allowed the business in question to use the same trading
name for some 18 years) objected, and applied for the domain name to be
transferred to it.

The Adjudicator refused, holding that the objector hadn’t proved that the name “Mr. Plastic” was distinctive to it. The position would have been different if the original business had registered the name ”Mr. Plastic” as a trademark, or if it had only allowed other businesses to use the trading name under a license agreement.

This is an important move in online freedom in this country: although laws can obviously restrict freedom at times, I think this is an important development towards keeping those people who prey off the internet and the intellectual property of others at bay. The specific decision of the judge in this case also shows a balanced approach to the issue.

Bloggers in chains?

When searching for something to write on this week, I was pleasantly surprised to see that Monday marked the start of a ground-breaking conference organized by Amnesty International on internet repression. The conference will have huge repercussions for the future of online freedoms.

Call on bloggers

The Amnesty conference - Some People Think the Internet is a Bad Thing: The Struggle for Freedom of Expression in Cyberspace – will call on victims of internet repression to recount their plights.

Amnesty claims that censorship is on the increase. Besides filtering of websites (Google, Microsoft and Yahoo being the main culprits in this area), there has also been a rapid increase in “politically motivated” closures of websites. Imprisonment of bloggers also seems to be a rising phenomenon.

Look at the case of Iranian blogger Kianoosh Sanjari. Sanjari was arrested in October following his blogging about conflicts between the Iranian police and the supporters of Shia cleric Ayatollah Boroujerdi. Or twenty-two-year-old Egyptian blogger Abdul Kareem Nabeel Suleiman – he was imprisoned for four years in February for insulting Islam and defaming the President of Egypt.

Suleiman’s fellow Egyptian blogger, Amr Gharbeia, told BBC: "The web is creating a more open society, it is allowing more people to speak out. It's only natural that upsets some people."

Fight for online freedom

Bloggers need to fight this repression, in order to protect our right to freedom of expression. We can get involved in promoting online freedom, by highlighting the plight of fellow bloggers jailed for what they wrote in their online journals. Amnesty International is asking all bloggers to show their support for freedom of expression by blogging about the erosion of media freedom.

"Freedom of expression online is a right, not a privilege - but it's a right that needs defending," said Steve Ballinger of Amnesty International. "We're asking bloggers worldwide to show their solidarity with web users in countries where they can face jail just for criticising the government."

Also, be sure to visit Irrepressible.info, Amnesy's site for online freedom. This is a very cool site, and a must for any bloggers who want to actively fight censorship.