Domain Name Monitoring

Domain brand monitoring covers second level domain names, or what is typically thought of as the “name” of the domain that comes to the left of the “dot” – for example, trademark.com or productname.ca.

Domain names are stored in the domain registries in Punycode format, therefore in order to search for IDN values, please enter the domain you wish to monitor in Punycode.

Monitoring brands, trademarks and product names belonging to competitors can provide insight into their activities. Monitor a keyword or text string that matches a competitors’ brand name, trademarked term, or slogan by using the Ongoing Monitoring (Scheduled Search) option and see when domains containing the term are registered or deleted.

Knowing how a particular name, term or keyword is being used online by others is important before investing time and effort into building and growing a brand. To research a particular name, term, or keyword during the brand development process, simply run a Single Search to get a report on all of the domain registrations that currently contain it.

For some ccTLDs, including .CA, data is only updated monthly. Depending on available data feeds and spidering methods, some registered ccTLD domains may not appear in the results. Conversely, due to domains naturally expiring and/or being deleted on a daily or even hourly basis, some domain names listed in the results may actually prove to be no longer registered.

Defending your mark is important. A cease and desist letter is a good place to start. A domain registration matching or containing your mark does not necessarily mean trademark infringement is occurring. Infringement may be occurring if the domain registration is being used in a manner which is identical or confusingly similar to your trademark, and is in relation to products or services which are identical or similar to the products or services which the your registration covers.

URS: The Uniform Rapid Suspension System is a rights protection mechanism that complements the existing Uniform Domain-Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) by offering a lower-cost, faster path to relief for rights holders experiencing the most clear-cut cases of infringement. More information: https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/urs-2014-01-09-en

UDRP: Under this ICANN policy, most types of trademark-based domain-name disputes must be resolved by agreement, court action, or arbitration before a registrar will cancel, suspend, or transfer a domain name. Disputes alleged to arise from abusive registrations of domain names (for example, cybersquatting) may be addressed by expedited administrative proceedings that the holder of trademark rights initiates by filing a complaint with an approved dispute-resolution service provider. More information: https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/help/dndr/udrp-en

CDRP: CIRA’s Dispute Resolution Policy (CDRP) is a mechanism through which individuals and businesses that meet CIRA's Canadian Presence Requirements can obtain quick, out-of-court arbitrations at relatively low cost for clear-cut cases of bad faith registration of .CA domain names. More information: https://cira.ca/legal-policy-compliance/cdrp-process-and-decisions

WIPO: The WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center provides time- and cost-efficient mechanisms to resolve internet domain name disputes, without the need for court litigation. This service includes the WIPO-initiated Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP), under which the WIPO Center has processed some 44,000 cases. More information:

Litigation: If the above processes fail, litigation is also an option. The court process can be protracted however, and requires companies to present legal arguments as to why a domain registered to another party should rightfully belong to them. To do this, a company will need to prove that a domain was registered in bad faith, as well as justify why it was not registered by them in the first place as the legitimate trademark holder.