Warning
Info
Warning
Info
Simple English definitions for legal terms
Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act
Read a random definition: granting clause
A quick definition of Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act:
The Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act is a law that helps trademark owners protect their brand names from being used by others on the internet. If someone registers a domain name that is the same or similar to a trademark, and they do it in bad faith with the intention of making a profit, the trademark owner can go to court to get the domain name transferred to them. However, if the person who registered the domain name has a legitimate reason for doing so, they may be allowed to keep it.
A more thorough explanation:
The Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act (ACPA) is a federal law passed in 1999 that allows trademark owners to obtain a court order to transfer ownership of a domain name from a cybersquatter to the trademark owner.
In order to prove a violation of the ACPA, the trademark owner must show:
- The mark and the domain name are identical or confusingly similar
- The mark was distinctive when the domain name was first registered
- The trademark owner used the mark commercially before the domain name was registered
- The domain registrant acted in bad faith and intended to profit from the trademark's use
Registering a domain name with the intent to sell it to the trademark owner is considered an act of bad faith. However, if the defendant can prove a legitimate reason for the domain name registration, they may be allowed to keep the name.
For example, if a person registers the domain name "CocaColaSucks.com" with the intention of criticizing the company and not to profit from the use of the trademark, they may be able to keep the domain name. However, if a person registers the domain name "CocaCola.com" with the intention of selling it to the company for a profit, they would be in violation of the ACPA.
Anticounterfeiting Consumer Protection Act | antideficiency legislation