legal, business-plan, copyright, domain-name, securitySo if there already exists a web app to www.example.com and I want to make a different web app with the same name but different extension like www.example.de, could there be any problem?
Can they take any legal action against me?
Yes, they can. Particularly if they’ve a trademark. There’s no shortage of examples of trademark related disputes. See for instance Apple vs Apple, or Microsoft vs Mike Rowe Soft.
The key to co-habitate happily in such cases is to not be competing against one another. If there’s the slightest possibility that a trademark owner’s business and yours could be confused by their prospective buyers, you’re basically asking for a lawsuit.
If, on the other hand, it’s just a cybersquatter or if you’re in a completely different business, then that shouldn’t be much of a problem. You might receive an enquiry and even an angry lawyer letter in the latter case, but if you do you can politely reply back pointing out you’re in a different business and the lawyer who sent it will pick up that you’re here to stay. (Get an actual lawyer to draft that reply if that happens though, because IANAL and nor are you.)
Trademark is just one method a business can use to protect its brand. Even if they don’t have a copyright on the name, there is a court based in Switzerland under the wing of the UN for domain name resolution.
Examples that I can recall during the past 20years that might interest you:
Sting, the musician is one example, and Madonna another. Sting lost his case because the chap behind sting.com could prove that 1) he was not squatting on the name 2) had never approached the musician with the idea of selling the domain name for large amounts of money 3) was using it only for email, not a website and 4) had been using the name on old fashioned bulletin boards since before the internet became common. Madonna won her case for other reasons - the person behind Madonna.com had placed porn on it, and offered to sell it to Madonna at a tidy profit.
Other examples I can think of is the Ideal Home Exhibition in the UK. One person had the .co.uk, another had the .com equivalent. The courts ruled one was trying to milk money from the bigger more well known business.
Then there is the case of Visa condoms and Visa credit card. The condom maker had argued that the name was akin to a visa in a passport, that “entrance was approved”. The judge ruled that the majority of folk would think credit cards first, prior to thinking condoms and that the condom company was using the branding of the credit card company as leverage.
Prince.com was fought by a sports clothing company and the musician.
Wembley Stadium too went all the way to the UN. Some tall chap said he had been known by many of his friends for many many years with the nickname “Wembley Stadium” and thus, had the right to the domain name. The courts were not amused. He lost.
WWF (the folk who look after animals/wild life, and separately, wrestlers) was fought on and off for many years.
The list is endless.
If you think you have valid right to use a domain name, then give it a try - another party could try to sue you - it does not mean they will win, but your gut should tell you if you are leaning against an open door.
If you need some help sleeping at night, take a look at ICANN (who control the 13 top DNS servers that do name/IP address translation) https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/help/dndr/udrp-en or World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) http://www.wipo.int/amc/en/domains/
Most domains are subject to the Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy, or UDRP. Trademark holders can file an arbitration claim under the UDRP against registrants of domains that include their trademarks. The arbitrator can then order the domain to be transferred to the trademark holder, or canceled. UDRP decisions are public and searchable, so you can look for similar cases and get a feel for them. For more specific advice, you’ll want to get a lawyer.
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