Domain squabble: Johnnie Walker, booze, beats John Walker, guy

Xeni Jardin 8:23 am Mon Feb 24, 2003

A guy named John Walker who tried to register "johnniewalker.me.uk" just lost the second-ever .me.uk dispute to the makers of Johnnie Walker whisky, after a Nominet dispute expert suspended the domain and ruled that it was "an abusive registration."

The domain was registered by Walker in September 2002 in the relatively new .me.uk space and, according to the Response, was set up to offer tutorials on developing web content, web marketing and search engine submission tips. Walker claimed that he had been nicknamed "Johnnie Walker" since childhood and was therefore entitled to keep the domain. However, evidence presented by the Complainant indicated that the web site had, in fact, "contained several references to alcoholism, alcoholics anonymous and contained a representation of an apparently intoxicated man walking across the screen".

Link to Nominet ruling, Link to Demys news item, Discuss (via Baker & Mackenzie e-law alert)

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