The first step—the IP Claim Service—is available May 21-July 9 and is designed to help businesses protect their valuable intellectual property (IP)—before .biz registration begins
Every business wants to be recognized for having a robust, secure Web presence that links employees, customers, vendors and partners all over the world. And .biz will make it all possible. To service the huge demand for .biz domains, a three-step launch process exists, ensuring fairness and professionalism—every step of the way.
Participating in the first phase, the IP Claim Service, is the best way to discourage cybersquatters from infringing on your company’s or your clients’ valuable trademarks. It only lasts from May 21 to July 9—after which no further filings will be accepted. To take the first step, click on the IP Claim section of the chart below.
DomainRegister.com, a Franklin Communications Services property, is able to offer this service as a Premier Gold Partner of Network Solutions, an accredited .biz Registrar.
The IP Claim Service is designed to help registered and common law trademark and service mark
owners protect their valuable intellectual property (IP) rights against potential infringement
and cybersquatters during the launch of the .biz registry. Here’s an overview of how it works:
| Feature |
How it works |
Benefit |
| Notification |
Filing an IP Claim notifies prospective .biz registrants of potential infringement to your IP rights |
Warns off cybersquatters and others unaware of
claims against a name BEFORE they complete the Domain Name Application Forces the
prospective registrant to acknowledge the claim before going ahead with registration
Sends the Claimant contact information about the successful registrant |
| Standing in the Start-up Trademark Opposition Policy(STOP) |
Provides the Claimant an entry into the
.biz Start-up Trademark Opposition Policy should any domain name disputes arise during the launch |
IP Claimants are essentially “first in line”
for resolving conflicts using the Start-up Trademark Opposition Policy (STOP) which will save
them valuable time and money in solving domain name disputes ONLY IP Claimants –
those filing claims during the IP Claim Service – may use this process, which is specially
designed for the .biz launch STOP carries a lower burden of proof than the standard
Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy, which will be used after the .biz launch, and provides a more rapid forum for resolving conflicts |
| Cooling-Off Period |
Automatic 30-day hold put on registrations with a claim against them |
Gives the Claimant valuable time to act BEFORE the address goes live |
Need more detail? Click on the links below to learn more about the IP Claim Service.
Why file an IP Claim?
When can I file?
How will it work?
Before you get started.
What does it cost?
Step by step instructions.
Where do I submit?
Claimants using the IP Claim Service get the following benefits:
1) Notification
Filing an IP Claim notifies applicants for .biz domain names of a Claimant’s IP rights. This notification warns the applicant that an intellectual property owner believes it has intellectual property rights in the name for which the applicant is applying. The process protects both Claimants and applicants by reducing the risk that a business or individual may unknowingly infringe on another’s trademark rights. It also sends a warning flag to so-called cybersquatters.
If a company or individual submits a domain name application that is an exact match with an IP Claim, they will be notified of the potential conflict and must inform the NeuLevel Registry Service of its decision to continue with the application for the domain name. The notification to the domain name applicant will include the name of the business that submitted the IP Claim form, a description of the goods and services and the date on which the mark was first used in commerce. It will also have the name of the individual to whom legal correspondence should be addressed. This provides an opportunity for the companies to work out conflicts in advance.
2) Standing
Only Claimants have entry into the .biz streamlined Start-up Trademark Opposition Policy
(STOP) should any IP conflict occur during the launch. The Start-up Trademark Opposition Program
Program carries a lower burden of evidence and puts Claimants first in line for resolution
should a conflict arise. To learn more about STOP, click here.
3) Cooling-Off Period
During the Name Selection (Step 2), an automatic 30-day hold is put on any registrations with
a claim against them. This provides the Claimant the opportunity to use STOP,
or take other appropriate action. This step is more time-sensitive and potentially less costly
than if a company had to use the Uniform
Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) or litigation.
Unlike the UDRP, STOP makes it easier for a trademark owner to demonstrate a “bad faith” domain name registration. Under the UDRP, a trademark owner must demonstrate that a domain name was both registered and used in “bad faith.” In response to concerns expressed by the intellectual property community, under the new STOP policy, a trademark owner need only demonstrate that the domain name was registered in bad “faith” or used in bad faith, if a domain name registrant registered the domain name solely with the purpose of selling it to a third party. This would constitute a violation of the STOP policy.
NOTE: Entering a name into the IP Claim Service database is not an application for the name
itself and does not automatically create a domain name application. Users of the IP Claim Service must file a separate application if they want an opportunity to register the domain name. This will occur in Phase 2 which is coming soon.
When can I file?
Entry into the IP Claim Service runs from May 21 to approximately July 9. After this period no
additional filings for IP Claims will be accepted. The IP Claim database will only be used during the initial Domain Name Application & Selection steps leading up to the launch of the .biz Registry. After the Registry begins accepting live registrations, new registrations for domain names will no longer be checked against the IP Claim Service database.
How will it work?
- During Step 1, an intellectual property owner will provide the following information to the NeuLevel Registry Service for its IP Claim database:
- Account holder contact information
- Intellectual property (IP) owner contact information
- Person to receive legal correspondence regarding claims (name and contact information)
- The character string for which you are claiming IP rights (note that the associated domain name for this string will be an exact match with the character string plus the .biz extension)
- Description of goods/services, including the international class of goods and services
- Date that your intellectual property was first used in commerce
- Status (whether IP rights are based on registration or application with any national trademark office-or based on common law rights)
- The effective date of an application or registration provided above, if applicable.
- Country where the IP was first used
- During the Domain Name Application step (Step 2), the NeuLevel Registry Service will monitor all applications for exact matches with our IP Claim database. Whenever there is an exact match between the name an IP owner has claimed and a domain name application, the NeuLevel Registry Service will notify the applicant and advise them of the IP owner's claim. Specifically, we provide the following information:
- IP String being claimed
- Name of the company that owns the IP
- Details regarding the claim (including description of the goods and services associated with the IP String, date of first use, country of first use, status of claim—registered, pending or common law)
- Name and contact info for the legal contact: someone whom you designate to receive legal correspondence on your behalf, regarding the claim
NOTE: A domain name applicant who submits a domain name application for the exact mark claimed by an IP Claimant must notify the NeuLevel Registry Service of its decision to go ahead with the domain name selection process.
- If the applicant notifies the NeuLevel Registry Service of their decision to go ahead, the NeuLevel Registry Service will process the domain name application and include it during the name selection process
- If applicant fails to notify the NeuLevel Registry Service of a decision-or if the applicant notifies the NeuLevel Registry Service that they do not wish to go ahead-the domain name application will not be processed or included in the name selection process.
After the close of the applications window (September 25), domain names will be awarded to selected registrants. In cases where there are multiple applications for the same name, all applications will be randomized prior to the selection of one application to receive the name.
- At the start of Step 3, .biz Domain Names Go Live, unless the domain name is subject to an IP Claim.
An automatic 30-day hold is placed on any domain name registrations for which there is a match with an IP Claim. Upon the launch of the Registry, IP Claimants will be notified if there is
a match between a domain name registration and their IP Claim. the NeuLevel Registry Service
will provide the Claimant(s) all the WHOIS data for the successful domain name registrant.
The "Hold Period" provides the Claimant the opportunity to use
STOP or take other appropriate action, as needed.
Before you get started.
To save time before creating a new IP Claim, it is helpful to have all the appropriate information in front of you. This information will be required each time you create a new IP Claim. Here's a list of what you'll need:
- Account holder contact information. This is the name of the individual who will be responsible for entering information and making changes to the IP Claim Form, if that is necessary.
- Intellectual property (IP) owner contact information.
- Person to receive legal correspondence regarding claims (name and contact information).
- The character string for which you are claiming intellectual property rights (note that the associated domain name for this string will be an exact match with the character string plus the .biz extension).
- Description of goods/services.
- Date that your intellectual property was first used in commerce.
- Status (whether IP rights are based on registration or application with any national trademark office-or based on common law rights).
- The effective date of an application or registration provided above, if applicable.
- Country where the IP was first used.
What does it cost?
The filing fee for each IP Claim is US $99.00 (payable with the following major credit cards: VISA,
MasterCard, Discover) . DomainRegister.com, a Franklin Communications Services property, offers this service through its Premier Gold Partnership with Network Solutions, an accredited .biz Registrar.
Step by step instructions.
The IP Claim form collects important information designed to protect your alleged intellectual property rights. Before you file an IP Claim, please review-and print out-the specifics on what you need to do:
- Determine the Name of the Account Owner.
The account owner is the individual who will be responsible for entering information and making changes to the IP Claim form, if that is necessary. This information will be used to identify you. You will need to provide the following:
- Name
- E-mail address
- Phone number (be sure to include your country code or area code, depending on where you are located)
- Fax number (be sure to include the country code or area code, depending on where you are located)
- Company name
- Postal address
You will also receive an e-mail confirmation after you establish your account. You should retain a copy of this information for your records since you will need to use this information to log onto your account in the future.
- Select a Registrar
For a list of ICANN-accredited, .biz Registrars for IP Claim Service, click here.
- Create a New Trademark or Service Mark Claim.
This is the section where you provide the details of the name to which you have alleged intellectual property rights. the NeuLevel Registry Service will not attempt to validate intellectual property claims or verify the accuracy of an IP Claim.
You will need:
- Company name or individual owning the IP rights
- Postal address
- Phone number (be sure to include your country code or area code, depending on where you are located)
- Fax number (be sure to include the country code or area code, depending on where you are located)
- Reference/Billing ID (You may wish to assign a number to identify your clients or projects. This alphanumeric string is intended to help you and will not be used by the NeuLevel Registry Service.)
- Contact information of person to receive legal correspondence regarding this claim. Specifically:
- Individual's name and position
- Company name (i.e., law firm)
- Address information (e-mail and postal)
- Phone and fax numbers
- IP Claim Details.
- IP Mark refers to the trademark or service mark in which you have intellectual property rights. This name must be limited to ASCII characters.
- The IP Claim String is automatically created based on the IP Mark you provide. The IP Claim String is the IP Mark (that you provide) plus the extension .biz. For example, if you claimed intellectual property rights to the name neulevel, the IP Claim string would be neulevel.biz.
- Description of Goods/Services: Please provide a description that best describes the product/service category(ies) that is(are) associated with your IP Mark. For example, NeuLevel, Inc. provides domain name registry services. If NeuLevel were to file an IP Claim for the mark "neulevel" it may choose to provide the description "domain name registry services".
- Date of first use. This is the date that your company first started using the trademark or service mark in commerce.
- Status. Use the dropdown menu to indicate if you have a registration or application for the IP Mark or whether your claim is based on common law or use.
- If you submitted an application to national trademark office or if you have registered a trademark with a national trademark office, indicate the date that the trademark application was filed or registered, as applicable.
- Country of first use. Indicate the country where you first used the trademark for which you are submitting the IP Claim.
After you complete this information, you may review it for completeness and for accuracy.
You only need to submit one IP Claim form for each individual trademark or service mark. However, there is no restriction on the number of IP Claim forms you can submit for different trademarks or service marks.
After submitting payment for the claim form, the account holder will receive an e-mail confirmation of the IP Claim(s) submitted - and the amount of the payment. You should retain this information for your records since it will be used to help you manage your account and will be required if you wish to use the Start-up Trademark Opposition Policy (STOP), after the .biz Registry Goes Live.
Completing the IP Claim form is not a substitute for submitting a domain name
application-nor is it a guarantee that you will receive your chosen domain name. Information about submitting a domain name application will come in Phase 2 (available shortly).
Where do I submit?
Click here for IP Claim Service.
Domain Register
allows people, on a global basis, to search for available .com, .net, .org, .biz, .info, .us, .asia, .eu, .am, .ag, .at, .be, .bz, .cc, .ch, .co, .com.co, .net.co, .nom.co, .cx, .cz, .de, .fm, .gd, .gs, .hn, .in, .co.in, .net.in, .org.in, .firm.in, .gen.in, .ind.in, .la, .lc, .li, .me, .mn, .mobi, .ms, .mx, .com.mx, .co.nz, .net.nz, .org.nz, .pl, .sc, .tc, .tv, .tw, .com.tw, .net.tw, .co.uk, .org.uk, .me.uk, domain names. We perform a 'whois' in a user-friendly format. Once a desired available domain name is found, Domain Register allows people to order their domain name registration with the InterNIC on-line. This is also called URL registration, web name, website name, custom domain registration, dns registration services, net names registration, internet identity registration, or even sometimes internet business name registration.
Click here to see the list of U.S. States and Countries with which we've done business registering domain names!
