Basware Oy, owner of the BASWARE trademark (held since 2001), filed a UDRP complaint with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) regarding the domain name Basware.ai. Registered in 2025, the domain only displays a “Coming Soon… Contact Us” page and has not conducted any substantive business.
Basware Oy sent a cease and desist notice to the domain holder and offered damages of $500 and $5,000, both of which were rejected. The domain holder claimed the domain had higher value due to its “identical resemblance to a globally recognized brand name,” and later attempted to justify the registration by citing vague business concepts such as “BasCookware” and “Bas Studios.”
The WIPO panel rejected these arguments, determining that the business idea was undated, merely “private thought,” and that no independent meaning or actual intent to use the word “basware” was found. The panel clearly pointed out that the core purpose of registering the domain name was to leverage the brand value of Basware to demand a premium from the trademark owner, constituting malicious registration.
Ultimately, the UDRP ruled in favor of Basware Oy’s appeal, requiring the transfer of the Basware.ai domain name to the complainant to protect the legitimate rights and interests of the trademark owner.
News Source:domaingang.com，This article does not represent our position.
