The
WIPO
(World Intellectual Property Organization) handeddown a ruling regarding the dispute filed by the Tupac Shakur
Estate over the domains Tupac.com and Tupac.net . Judge Richard
D. Faulkner of Texas, ordered the domain names stay with the current
owner, R.J. Barranco. The two month dispute began when Tupac’s
estate sent a cease and desist letter to the domains owner. Demands
to give up the name to the Estate weren’t met, and the formal
process began. The Judge said in his ruling: "The position
asserted by the Claimant, if accepted, would effectively prohibit
any fan club from being established on the Internet if it mentioned
in the site name an artist’s name, where part or all of that name
related to a registered mark or even perhaps transgressed claims
of common law rights in a name. It would also permit persons in
the position of this Claimant to unjustly enrich themselves by
confiscating the work of fans and admirers in establishing a web
site supporting their favorite artists without any opportunity
for compensation."
Both of the names
were registered in 1998, and they both operate as a fan site for
the late Tupac Shakur. The WIPO recently made a man give up the
common name Madonna.com, and relinquish control of the URL to
the singer.
