As a branch of the Asian Domain Name Dispute Resolution Center (ADNDRC), the Hong Kong International Arbitration Center (HKIAC) is one of the domain name dispute resolution service providers. HKIAC is accredited, inter alia, by i) the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to administer domain name disputes under the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP), ii) the Hong Kong Internet Registration Corporation Ltd. (HKIRC) to administer disputes relating to Hong Kong domain names (.HK and .香港, procedure known as hkDRP) and iii) by the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC) to manage those falling under the out-of-court procedure dispute resolution relating to Chinese domain names (.中国, .中國 and .CN, a procedure called cnDRP). Since 2001, the HKIAC has administered more than 2,800 procedures.
In 2017, the HKIAC published a guide for parties and third-party decision-makers to, on the one hand, provide them with the information necessary for drafting correspondence and decisions and, on the other hand, to help them in the conduct of the proceedings. The HKIAC has just published the second edition of this guide (HKIAC, Guide to HKIAC Domain Name Dispute Resolution, 2nd Ed., 2022, hereafter “Guide HKIAC 2022”: hkiac.org).
Numbers
This second edition includes statistics based on data collected chiefly between 2018 and 2021. Complaints most often come from brand owners with their head office in the United States (25%), in China (20%), and Hong Kong (13%), while respondents overwhelmingly indicate a postal address in mainland China (74%) (HKIAC Guide 2022, p. 26). Procedures are often conducted in Chinese (57%) and English (43%) (HKIAC Guide 2022, p. 28).
Focus on the cnDRP
The HKIAC does not have exclusive jurisdiction over the out-of-court settlement of disputes relating to Chinese domain names. Indeed, the China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC) has also been competent since the origin of the cnDRP, in 2007. The Center for Arbitration and Mediation of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) was accredited in 2019. With fifteen years of experience in settlement of disputes relating to Chinese domain names, the HKIAC occupies a remarkable place. The HKIAC reveals that it has administered more than a thousand cases since the entry into force of the cnDRP (Guide HKIAC 2022, p. 14), which underlines the center’s expertise.
The guide includes several helpful reminders, particularly on a procedural level. Indeed, the HKIAC recalls the specificity of the cnDRP, which sets a time bar: initially two years but extended to three years since June 18, 2019 (HKIAC Guide, para. 38(ii), p. 14) (see also iptwins.com, 2020-12-03). The question of the starting point had been raised in various cases (see, e.g., iptwins.com, 2020-12-09 and iptwins.com, 2020-12-21). The selected decisions in the HKIAC Guide confirm that the transfer of the disputed domain name restarts (the HKIAC uses the verb “reset”) the registration date (HKIAC Guide 2022, para. 90, citing Lester Brands AV v. Chen Qiuheng (HKIAC Case No. DCN- 1500641, 10 October 2015) and Airbnb Inc. v. Guo Lanzhi (HKIAC Case No. DCN-1700742, 3 July 2017)). However, the authors of the guide alert parties and panelists to CNNIC’s contrary position:
“More recently, since the time bar was adjusted from two years to three years, CNNIC has confirmed to HKIAC that the three-year time bar starts from the date of registration of the domain name, and that transfers do not reset the time limit for filing a complaint. CNNIC has recommended that HKIAC should not accept complaints where the date of registration is time barred (i.e., over three years from the date the complaint is filed).” (HKIAC Guide 2022, para. 91).
CNNIC’s position lacks any legal logic. First, as the HKIAC guide points out, Article 9(a) expressly targets the acquisition of the domain name. Maintaining the CNNIC solution would mean rendering this provision useless. Second, UDRP case law equates the acquisition of a domain name with a new registration. This is solid and uncontested case law (WIPO Jurisprudential Overview, para. 3.9). Finally, the solution adopted by the panelists is consistent with principles governing civil liability law (iptwins.com, 2020-12-06).
The HKIAC guide also recalls that, unlike the UDRP rules of procedure which favor the language of the domain name registration contract, article 8 of the cnDRP provides that the procedure takes place in Chinese. However, this rule should not be considered an exception that would be derived from a comparison between the UDRP and the cnDRP. Indeed, concerning geographic top-level domains (country-code top-level domains or ccTLDs), the principle remains the official language or languages of the country corresponding to the ccTLD in question.
