Domain Name Arbitration

A person who applies for a Hong Kong domain name is subject to Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy constraints. The agreement to use and register a Hong Kong domain name sets out the importance of the Dispute Resolution Policy and requires registrants to submit to compulsory arbitration proceedings at certain instances. That is, anyone who wants to register any Hong Kong domain name must first agree to abide by the Dispute Resolution Policy and accept the potential dispute resolution in the Hong Kong domain name through a coercive arbitration procedure.

At present, the Hong Kong International Arbitration Center is the only accredited service agency in Hong Kong to provide the public with a process of domain name compulsory arbitration to resolve disputes over domain names.

Under the Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy, a registrant of Hong Kong domain name (“Registrant”) is required to submit to a mandatory arbitration proceeding in the event a third party files a complaint against the former based on the following grounds:

• The Registrant's domain name in Hong Kong is either identical with or confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in Hong Kong in which the complainant has rights;
• The Registrant has no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the domain name; or
• The Registrant’s domain name has been registered and is being used in bad faith.