Channel wins fight over domain name

The Country Channel has held on to its internet domain name after a British internet TV channel with a similar name tried to force a change. The Sky subscription channel succeeded in overturning a controversial intellectual property rights decision.

Investor Andy Tyler said the original ruling could have opened floodgates to complaints from overseas companies that had little presence in New Zealand.

It was the first appeal against a decision by the Domain Names Commission under its dispute resolutions service and some believe it sets a precedent that strengthens domain name rules. Tyler said the company was “gobsmacked” when an earlier complaint asking to remove the website was upheld by the dispute body expert, retired High Court Judge Barry Paterson.

Had it lost its appeal, its brand name could have come under attack, Tyler said.

“It would have opened the door for websites with no New Zealand presence restricting domain names here,” he said.

Country Channel lawyer Howard Thompson - from McMahon Butterworth Thompson - said the legal issues over domain names was still relatively new in this country.

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