Before buying a domain name and using it, it does not hurt to study the legal aspects, thereby protecting the company. Now this is not just a website address on the Internet, but part of a business, a marketing strategy for promotion. Therefore, it is important to understand in which cases there are risks of legal problems and even litigation. If the owner has secured himself from claims and acts according to the rules, then everything will be in perfect order.
Features of the legal status of the domain
At the moment, any domain is not subject to intellectual property rights. But precedent cases are known in some European countries, where some resource names have already come under copyright protection. Therefore, any site in theory runs the risk of encountering such a problem.
Domain security is that it cannot be used by persons who do not have rights to the given name. Another feature – in this vein, the owner equates the domain he has chosen with assets. In other words: if someone registers a similar domain name, and the real owner finds out about it, then he has every right to confiscate or alienate. All this will be decided by the courts.
It is important to remember that now a domain is not just an address. It is also used for identification. This is part of the reputation, brand identity, its services, and products. Therefore, some names cannot be taken by someone who is not the owner. Similar options are not even considered, for example, involving localization, subject matter, or changing the domain level.
What do you need to know about registration?
To officially register a domain, pay for it and use it, you need to find a provider (often hosting) and conclude an agreement with him. So you can, if something happens, prove that the domain name belongs to you, and you dispose of the rights to it. You cannot register everything yourself.
Stages of cooperation:
- choosing a good domain;
- purchase;
- registration of personal data.
After that, the hosting independently assigns a specific domain name and after that it is allowed to use the name to promote a personal brand. This takes a maximum of 48 hours, which should be taken into account if you need to launch the platform urgently.
Purchase and register now cheap domain names any person can. To do this, you do not need to provide evidence of a business or a promotion strategy for a future resource. The main thing is to pay for the service for the specified period, and after the rent is provided in full. If the owner stops depositing funds, then for some period, depending on the hosting conditions, the portal will be blocked. Then the domain will return to the database if the money is not deposited into the account and there is no way to return the site and all the content that was on it.
How to secure a domain?
Domain registrar names never repeat the names that he assigns to clients. But this does not prevent competitors from creating similar ones by simply adding some letters or numbers. The registration itself does not cause negative legal consequences. However, if the brand is large and influential, then it can go to court if another platform uses its name for negative purposes.
At the same time, one should not forget about such a concept as a “trademark”. Sometimes the domain is completely associated with it, and the second one already has a copyright, which is forbidden to violate (fraught with trouble). If there is a trademark, then third parties cannot use the name in their activities.
