In a decisive ruling by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the domain Watertimer.com will remain with its current owner, while the complainant, a Colombian trademark holder, has been found guilty of Reverse Domain Name Hijacking (RDNH). The case highlights a growing trend of trademark owners misusing the UDRP process after failed domain purchase attempts.
The dispute involved Colombian individual Felipe Ospina and Thai respondent Prempracha Dmello. Ospina had registered the Colombian trademark “WATER TIMER EVERY DROPS MATTERS” in April 2025 and filed applications for “WATER TIMER” in Canada and the U.S. He also owns Watertimer.co, which merely hosts a sign-up page. In February 2025, he offered $500 to purchase Watertimer.com, which was rejected.
The respondent countered that he had purchased the domain in February 2023 for $4,120 after years of negotiations, and that it was originally registered in November 2001. The WIPO panelist, Italian legal expert Edoardo Fano, acknowledged the similarity between the trademark and domain but found no evidence of bad faith by the respondent.
Fano noted that the respondent acquired the domain more than a year before the complainant’s company was even founded in April 2024, and well before any trademark applications. He emphasized that there was no indication the respondent had the complainant or his trademark in mind at the time of acquisition.
Crucially, Fano ruled that the complainant had engaged in RDNH. Given the clear timeline, the complainant should have known he could not prove bad faith. Fano underscored that initiating a UDRP case after a failed purchase offer—without solid grounds—amounts to an abuse of the process.
The ruling sends a strong message: trademarks filed
News Source:domain-recht，This article does not represent our position.
