Domain Registration Related News
Domain Name Geography: Mexico Loses Fight
over Mexico.com
August 2004
In a recent decision, a World Intellectual
Property Organization (WIPO) domain name
arbitration panel dismissed a complaint filed by
the Mexican Tourist Board (MTB) against Latin
America Telecom (LAT) concerning the domain name
"mexico.com." The panel went so far as to find
that the complaint was brought in "bad faith"
and made a finding of attempted "Reverse Domain
Name Hijacking" against the MTB.
The Mexican Tourist Board is a company majority
owned by the Mexican government with a mandate
to promote tourism in Mexico.
Mexcio.com was registered on November 14, 1997,
by LAT, a U.S. company incorporated in Delaware.
LAT operates "mexico.com" as a general
information site about Mexico, including a
section containing advertisements for tourism
services such as hotels, transportation,
restaurants and entertainment.
In its complaint, the MTB argued that LAT had
registered the domain name in "bad faith" in
order to sell it for a profit at a later date.
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