Morning Folks!
Since the day I met Howard I have said that there would be a test case come along that we would have to win and set a standard that would serve to protect all other domains. That was 1999.
When I got this action on saveme.com, I knew that day had come. I knew instantly that this is where we would make our stand and this was the battle we wanted to fight. It was as much a gift as it was a fight.
This is one of the sweetest business accomplishments I have ever been involved in. The satisfaction of having somebody a world away GUILTY of Reverse Domain Name Hijacking! Trying to abuse the system to get what they wanted. Somebody that was warned about peeing on the electric fence and now the decision has been executed exactly as I wrote about when they still had a chance to reconsider.
To me this is just the start of this episode. The start of an era where companies, lawyers and others have FAIR WARNING that if they CHOOSE to go down this path, they too will be found GUILTY of REVERSE DOMAIN NAME HIJACKING just like Márcio Mello Chaves, aka Márcio Chaves, Marcio Chaves and his brother Heitor.
THEY will have to deal with the fallout and the stigma of being found guilty of an attempted hijacking for the rest of their lives as will their firm Almeida Advogados, Brazil. They had ample time and warning but instead pressed forward and NOW…..DEAL WITH IT! Deal with me NEVER letting anyone forget. It will be known and circulated far and wide. It will be used to set an example and a standard. The bigger your company is, the more you worry. The more you have to lose. The more the MEDIA will be interested. Should you abuse the system to try and STEAL what does not belong to you, BE PREPARED. Seize something through a system designed to protect legitimate rights by abuse, and you can do serious and permanent damage to your company and brand. If that happens, blame yourselves as this should be your warning shot.
I would like to hear a clear statement by Almeida Advogados, Brazil now that they have been informed that one of their lawyers has engaged and found guilty in this abuse of Reverse Domain Name Hijacking. Is it ok? Did you encourage or discourage this hijacking? What is the position of your firm on this matter and will you be engaging in this practice in the future? These are legitimate questions going forward that should have some clear answers or we just will come to our own conclusions. Will Almeida Advogados, Brazil, ever be a party to Reverse Domain Name Hijacking again? We will watch and see if this was just an isolated incident or something more.
I will fight to make this practice a crime with penalties. But until then, THIS is the way and the method to shine the light of day in this practice and make these cockroaches know it’s over. Sometimes you just need to scream bloody murder to get people to pay attention and understand just how widespread and disgusting this is. I was not the first to get a RDNH decision, I won't be the last, but I guarantee nobody else has used this GIFT in the dramatic way I will be using it.
The MAIN reason we got the Reverse Domain Name Hijacking (RDNH) decision is we sought it. We fought for it. Howard was clear and I was clear that anything less would be “The agony of defeat.” Just a win without the RDNH finding to ME would have been a loss. Not a loss, but a great loss. One of the top 5 losses in my entire business life. But a victory here would be a huge achievement personally and one I could share with everyone else that owns a domain name.
As I do my research, it is not often that WIPO uses the phrase “Reverse Domain Name Hijacking”. As far as I can see so far in my research, just several dozen at most. Most stop short at “Abuse”. Many because they just did not go for the RDNH in their response. Some would have won had they asked.
Nat Cohn has published a blog post and comprehensive list at
http://www.domainarts.com/2012/06/18/why-reverse-domain-name-hijacking-needs-to-be-a-real-penalty-and-the-most-comprehensive-list-of-rdnh-cases/
I think what will become more important than the actual cases are the parties that were found guilty and the firms they worked for and the companies they represented. I want to plaster those names all over the Internet with every opportunity I get. And should ANYONE be on that list more than once, they will be used alongside our poster boy!
Sure, it cost thousands to defend and I have lost thousands in lost revenue over the past few months. But that is the cost of doing business and I will get the money back by having this decision on record forever. THIS is my insurance policy for the next CLOWN! For the next would be HIJACKER. This is a vaccination shot that not only I can use but you can use. Don’t ever let it happen to you again when you have done nothing wrong and have not infringed on anyone’s mark whether existent or imagined.
I did not look for this fight. I did not want this fight. But when met with the reality and gravity of what was at stake for me, you and all, this HAD to be a fight to the death. The jugular. Without mercy. And not always in the best of taste. But that is how I do battle. That may not be your style and I respect that but that is MY style and it works for me. Results and everything else. Results that you can point to and promises I can keep. War ain’t pretty!! Rules go out the window when you are under assault. Our livelihood was under assault and the only option was victory and to be on record BEFORE hand so that I could carry out now.
I am not even sure if they understand the fallout to come that they caused. It could be torture. Not at my hands but at their own hands That is what gives me a license to do this. This is what gives me the credibility to carry out what I promised. My only mission is to spread the word about what happened. Ooops, not so good for these clowns. Each day that passes will get a little worse. The results for them and their antics will be known to all men.
But I still have what they want. I doubt their ego will ever allow them to reach out to me. They could still figure out a formula to rehabilitate their image. Maybe coming out and having a guest post here. A Mia Culpa if they choose. I guess we will really find out what they are made of now. I won’t hold my breath, but I do know how to turn a negative into a positive.
The reason I was so hard on these guys is because of the facts involved. Then when I learned that Marcio Chaves actually went to some WIPO Academy and classes that made it exponentially worse because he KNEW what he was doing. He KNEW he was abusing the system. He KNEW that this might be considered Reverse Domain Name Hijacking because he said so in his complaint. So this was no honest mistake made by somebody that over reached. This was a complete abuse of the system and he really should be sanctioned for it. But without that, WE have a responsibility to bring this up when necessary.
And for the next CLOWN, be prepared. I won’t fight in the way you expect. All I know is I will get the end result and all the bullshit in the middle does not count very much. There will be companies that go out of business after they try hijacking a domain they have NO rights to. This is quite different than a legitimate case where there are two sides and a judgment needs to be made. This is an attempted theft and worse. That is why the next guy is warned what is at stake. If they lose, they lose so big that their life will never be the same and there will be nothing they can do to fix that. If will affect more than them and their firms. The stigma will follow them forever. I warned beforehand what would happen and these guys did not heed the warning. Now it has unfolded EXACTLY as I said it would.
Do I feel bad? No way! They were going to change my life and so they were met with a force they never dreamed could be. When I focus on something, it is like a laser cutting through solid steel. The next clown pulling this is going to have it much worse than these guys. I am now armed with many wins and a CLEAR and UNANIMOUS RDNH decision.
Anyone have a graphic of a guy peeing on an electric fence?
The reason this decision was so important was because of the amount of levels and elements involved. Plus I raised the bar very high from the get go because of these things.
- Can you establish “Bad Faith” from a domain registered in 1996 and a company born in 2010?
- Can you establish trademark rights without even a trademark?
- Is it “Bad Faith” when the other party contacts you FIRST to buy a domain name?
- Is it “Bad Faith” when you blow the other party off as insignificant?
- Had there been a loss here it would have been open season from all country codes trying to get their .com domain equivalent. It would have been devastating beyond anything we have ever seen because actors like Marcio could have used it in a wholesale manner around the world. Every .com would be in jeopardy.
I was happy to taste the thrill of victory because the agony of defeat would have been more devastating to me than I can even bear to think about. When you are all in emotionally, you are all in! I have taken their #1 weapon away and now we get to use it against them in the way they sought to use it against me.
Have a GREAT Day!
Rick Schwartz
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