Brands incorporating a term referring to the terminology of sustainable development abound. It suffices to query the “Global Brand Database” (from the World Intellectual Property Organization: branddb.wipo.int) to realize that entrepreneurs, startups, and well-established companies frequently file trademarks comprising a “Green” or “Eco” element.
In this context, several top-level domain registries bet on the success of TLDs such as .bio, .earth, .eco, .energy, .green, .organic or .solar.
One of the golden rules of domain name portfolio management is the registration of domain names under the TLDs corresponding either to an element of the trademark, to the goods or services designated by said trademark, or to the company’s philosophy.
Thus, any company operating in the world of luxury should register its domain names under the .fashion, .luxury, and .luxe TLDs. The same rule applies to the economic sectors of energy and sustainable development. For example, Chevron owns <chevron.energy>, redirecting to <chevron.com>.
However, many companies omit or neglect relevant TLDs. For example, the top-level domain .solar has met with little success among photovoltaic leaders. Consequently, in the absence of prior reservation, domain names identical to the leading brands in this economic niche were registered by third parties and then put up for sale on a secondary market platform, including <trina.solar>, <longi.solar> and < jinko.solar>.
Similarly, companies engaged in a transition towards a neutral ecological footprint should investigate the possibility of integrating the relevant TLDs into their protection and communication strategies. In this regard, the <lego.green> case speaks volumes. Indeed, for several years, Lego has been investing in the research and development of sustainable and environmentally friendly materials (LEGO Group to invest up to US$400 million over three years to accelerate sustainability efforts Download all assets – 82MB, lego.com, 2020-09-15). As part of this project, the company revealed, on June 23, 2021, a prototype made from recycled plastic (The LEGO Group reveals first prototype LEGO® brick made from recycled plastic Download all assets – 348MB, lego.com, 2021-06-23). The media extensively relayed the information (see, e.g., wired.com, 2021-07-11 and cnn.com, 2021-06-30). Shortly after, a cybersquatter registered the domain name <lego.green>. Lego filed a UDRP complaint to the Arbitration and Mediation Center of the World Intellectual Property Organization. Of course, unsurprisingly, the domain name was transferred (WIPO, D2022-1331, LEGO Juris A/S v. Privacy Service Provided by Withheld for Privacy ehf / Adam He, <lego.green>, June 13, 2022, transfer, panelist Alistair Payne). Nevertheless, registering the domain name before the announcement of the said prototype would undoubtedly have allowed the company, on the one hand, to allocate more financial resources to its project (however minimal the savings may be) and, on the other hand, to control this great domain name that is <lego.green> to, perhaps, reveal its progress in terms of research and development.
