Domain Name "yahoo.net.cn" Granted to Yahoo

In April 2005, the Domain Name Dispute Resolution Center (DNRC) of China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission (CIETAC) issued a decision in favor of Yahoo Inc., ruling that domain name "yahoo.net.cn" registered by a Chinese company should be transferred to Yahoo.

Yahoo submitted a complaint with DNRC in February 2005, alleging that the identification part "yahoo" in the disputed domain name "yahoo.net.cn" registered by a Chinese company in 2002 is identical with Yahoo's registered trademark "YAHOO". The registration was made in bad faith and thus the disputed domain name should be transferred back to it..

The respondent did not file a response and therefore, a default decision was made.

The panel of DNRC found that the complainant started to use "Yahoo" as its commercial sign before the Chinese company registered the disputed domain name. The panel is of the opinion that using of "yahoo" in the disputed domain name by the respondent will easily mislead ordinary consumers and Internet users. Therefore, the respondent registered and used the disputed domain name in bad faith.