ICANN Meetings Beget Additional Acronyms: The URS and the UDRP

As I mentioned before, I attended remotely the presentation on "Trademark Protection in New gTLDs" at the ICANN Nairobi meeting on Monday. One of the trademark protection mechanisms for domain names registered in new TLDs discussed was the Uniform Rapid Suspension System or URS.

The URS is modeled after the UDRP. In fact, the elements to be proved are largely the same:
- The registered domain name is identical or confusingly similar to a mark in which the Complainant holds a valid registration issued by a jurisdiction that conducts a substantive examination of trademark applications prior to registration; and
- The Registrant has no legitimate right or interest to the domain name; and
- The domain was registered and is being used in bad faith.

One difference is the standard of proof. Since the URS is intended only for "clear cases of trademark abuse," the complainant must prove with "clear and convincing evidence" all three elements of the UDRP.

Another difference is available remedy. If the Examiner determines that the complainant has met its burden of proof, "the domain name shall be suspended for the balance of the registration period" and would resolve to "an informational web page provided by the URS Provider about the URS," meaning, ultimately, that the domain name registration would eventually expire, rather than transfer to the complainant as under the UDRP.

Although the discussion of the URS was primarily amenable, ICANN still has an open comment period for the URS draft proposal. And while the URS was developed to provide an inexpensive and efficient alternative to the UDRP, some meeting attendees referenced the fact that domain name dispute resolution providers have proposed expedited UDRP filings and how such "fast track" UDRPs might relate to the URS.

Of course, although the URS proposal has yet to gain full approval and expedited UDRP filings are now unavailable, there remains a convergence toward less expensive and more efficient domain name dispute resolution.

Next in line: RRDRP.