Network Marketing Distributor Requested to Release Domain Names by Corp Office!

[libertycashbiz]

Greetings:

I am a distributor for a Network Marketing Company, which I will call Silver Network.

Silver Network Corporate has contacted me requesting the release of (3) Domain names

which I have had for about 1 year and the company is about 15 months old. The

company's trademark name is Silver Network of which it has (3) self replicating websites

for business use: silvernetwork.com or silvernetwork.com/distributor id, shopsilver.com

or shopsilver.com/distributor id, and silverG.com or silverG.com/distributor id. The

silvernetwork.com is the business opportunity website; the shopsilver.com is the Retail

Only website, and the silverG.com is a Squeeze Page with autoreponder business

website. Note: Shop Silver, Silver, and SilverG are not TRADEMARKED.

My domain names are shopsilvernetwork.com, shopsilver.org, and silvershopsilver.com all

being forwarded to my Silver Network self replicated retail website of shopsilver.com.

Another Silver Network distributor had his contacts sent in ERROR to my website at

shopsilvernetwork.com instead of the proper website of shopsilver.com/distributor id

which was my retail website. A clear mistake made my the other Silver Network

distributor's information provided to their potential prospects.

Corporate Office is stating that I have created confusion for potential customers and I

am infringing on the company trademark. In particular the shopsilvernetwork.com is

infringing on their trademark and the “shopsilver” is a business term that they have used

and therefore can make a claim to domain names that contain that phrase (though it is

not trademarked).

They are therefore requesting that I release all (3) to them which they will dead head

with their account GoDaddy.

I can see that the fight to keep my domain of shopsilvernetwork.com could be an uphill

battle which may not be worth the fight but the other 2 domains shopsilver.org and

silvershopsilver.com are not trademarked and I believe should not be protected by the


Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy created by ICANN

Your feedback is requested. Shall I challenge all 3 or 2 of the 3, or just release and walk

away.

Thanks for your feedback, inadvance

libertycashbiz

 

[silentg]

shopsilvernetwork.com, shopsilver.org, and silvershopsilver.com
All three domains show up as unregistered. So there's no case. Just tell them to spend $30 or less and register it.

 

[libertycashbiz]

Sorry, as suggested for privacy reasons, I did not use the real Network Marketing Corporate Name and Real Domain Names. That way I will not influence anyone's business or desire to do business with this particular company. But the names used are good examples of the legal issue.

 

[hugegrowth]

You might not have a good case because you are using the domains to send traffic to that company. If you were using them for a totally unrelated subject or site, then you'd have a better case. But you probably bought them to use for this company, even if it is in a way benefiting the company. Though it might not be a trademark, they were using the word for their business before you bought the domains, and you are clearly using the domains in relation to this company. There could be a case for confusion if a group of people have already mistakenly gone to your domain.

Even if you win, there may be bad blood between you and the company, and you are a distributor for them. It honestly doesn't sound like it's worth the trouble, unless you are ready to keep the domains and walk away from the company.

Or, you could just suggest to them that you want to keep the domains but won't use them to market your mlm site anymore. But then what is the use in keeping the domains?

 

[libertycashbiz]

Thanks for responding. Because I was to close to the issue, I just wanted to get another point of view. I am in agreement with you as such that because I like the company and my upline team members, I will go ahead and transfer the domain names to the company with a negotiated settlement of my cost to make it happen along with the understanding that they will dead end the domain names.

The time and energy required to deal with this going forward could be costly in my other business venture activities.

God Bless!

 

[lordbyroniv]

Quitter

 

[libertycashbiz]

Interesting thought:

However, just thought that I share the response I sent to Silver Corporate:

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To: Mr. Corporate Contact

After careful consideration and review of my rights at Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy created by ICANN as a domain owner and the domain names of "shopsilvernetwork.com" potential (gray area not black and white) trademark infringement and non trademarked "shopsilver.org", "silvershopsilver.com", I have decided to move forward and transfer these items over to coporate with a request in doing so that they be dead ended or not to be used by corporate in any business activity and a slight request variation of our earlier conversation as follows: A one time credit refund in the amount of not less than $200 to my bank account (entail a good faith business settlement of a product of the month cost or expenditure thereof, transfer fees, renewal fees, plus my labor cost of which is the time I took away from my other business building activities to resolve this matter). I like Silver Network along with my upline team members and still have a desire to grow my Silver business and hope that what I have requested be accepted.

If this is acceptable, then please forward your GoDaddy transfer account information needed so that I in turn can contact my domain registrar to complete our dealings in this matter. Your forwarding this information would confirm our agreement in this matter and upon initiation confirmation of transfer proceeding via GoDaddy and/or other involved parties that the above stated credit refund be promptly sent to my bank account with no negative impact on my Silver Network business.

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In this response to Corporate, it is an attempt to get the matter behind me if accepted. However, if not, it positions me with an opportunity to up the $$$ amount and show the residing entity who will hear the case, that I did make a good faith effort to settle without taking it to the next level of Trademark Attorney and so on.

 

[Cartoonz]

ok, obviously you have some affiliation with this Network Marketing company and I can tell you exactly what will happen if you do not comply with their demand...

They will stop paying you. Period.

So, even though they may have no legal case whatsoever, it is in your better interest to comply.