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The company claimed it had been using the "WIP Systems" name for over 20 years but failed to provide any evidence to support this assertion
Work In Progress Creative Solutions Ltd (WIP Systems), a UK-based SaaS company, has been found guilty of reverse domain name hijacking by a UDRP panel. The ruling came after WIP Systems attempted to secure the domain name "wipsystems.com" through a cybersquatting complaint, despite having no legitimate claim to it.
WIP Systems, which operates under the domain names "wipsystems.co.uk" and "wipsystems.com.au," had been eyeing "wipsystems.com" for nearly two decades. The domain, however, was registered by a Washington state resident in 2000—well before WIP Systems began using its name online. The company claimed it had been using the "WIP Systems" name for over 20 years but failed to provide any evidence to support this assertion. Panelist Terry Peppard dismissed the complaint, highlighting that WIP Systems had filed the case out of frustration following unsuccessful attempts to purchase the domain. Peppard noted that WIP Systems knew, or should have known, that the domain was legitimately registered by the respondent long before the company established any rights to the "WIP Systems" name.
The panel found that the complaint lacked merit and that WIP Systems acted in bad faith, attempting to acquire the domain through abuse of the UDRP process. Recalling the legal consequences of reverse domain name hijacking, the ruling emphasizes the significance of genuine negotiations in domain disputes.
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