Complainant is Fenix International Limited c/o Walters Law Group, United States of America (“United States” or “U.S.”).
Respondent is PrivacyGuardian.org., United States / NameSilo, LLC, Domain Administrator, United States.
The disputed domain name <onlyfanq.com> is registered with NameSilo, LLC (the “Registrar”).
The Complaint was filed with the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center (the “Center”) on February 5, 2021. On February 5, 2021, the Center transmitted by email to the Registrar a request for registrar verification in connection with the disputed domain name. On February 5, 2021, the Registrar transmitted by email to the Center its verification response disclosing registrant and contact information for the disputed domain name, which differed from the named Respondent and contact information in the Complaint. The Center sent an email communication to Complainant on February 8, 2021, providing the registrant and contact information disclosed by the Registrar, and inviting Complainant to submit an amendment to the Complaint. Complainant filed an amendment to the Complaint on February 10, 2021.
The Center verified that the Complaint together with the amendment to the Complaint satisfied the formal requirements of the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Policy” or “UDRP”), the Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Rules”), and the WIPO Supplemental Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Supplemental Rules”).
In accordance with the Rules, paragraphs 2 and 4, the Center formally notified Respondent of the Complaint, and the proceedings commenced on February 17, 2021. In accordance with the Rules, paragraph 5, the due date for Response was March 9, 2021. Respondent did not submit any response. Accordingly, the Center notified Respondent’s default on March 10, 2021.
The Center appointed Lorelei Ritchie as the sole panelist in this matter on March 15, 2021. The Panel finds that it was properly constituted. The Panel has submitted the Statement of Acceptance and Declaration of Impartiality and Independence, as required by the Center to ensure compliance with the Rules, paragraph 7.
Complainant owns and operates <onlyfans.com>, via a website and social media platform. Complainant has various trademark registrations for its ONLY FANS mark in connection with subscription services, including transmission of videos and entertainment services. These include U.S. Registration No. 5,769,267 (registered June 4, 2019); and European Union Registration No. 017912377 (registered January 9, 2019).
The disputed domain name <onlyfanq.com> was registered on December 11, 2020. The URL associated with the disputed domain name redirects to a webpage offering adult entertainment services that compete with those offered by Complainant. Respondent has no affiliation with Complainant, nor any license to use its marks.
Complainant contends that (i) the disputed domain name <onlyfanq.com> is identical or confusingly similar to Complainant’s trademarks, (ii) Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in the disputed domain names; and (iii) Respondent registered and is using the disputed domain names in bad faith.
Specifically, Complainant contends that it owns the ONLY FANS mark, which it uses in its website and social media platforms. Complainant further contends that “www.onlyfans.com” is one of the most popular websites in the world in 2021.
Complainant contends that Respondent has registered a deliberate misspelling of Complainant’s well-known ONLY FANS mark, in order to divert potential consumers looking for Complainant and Complainant’s services. Complainant contends that Respondent lacks rights or legitimate interest in the disputed domain name, and rather has registered and is using it in bad faith, having simply acquired the disputed domain name for Respondent’s own commercial gain.
Respondent did not reply to Complainant’s contentions.
The Panel must first determine whether the disputed domain name <onlyfanq.com> is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in which Complainants has rights in accordance with paragraph 4(a)(i) of the Policy.
The Panel finds that it is. The disputed domain name contains an obvious misspelling of Complainant’s well-known ONLY FANS mark. This indicates a practice commonly known as typosquatting where a domain name registrant deliberately registers common misspellings of a well-known mark in order to divert consumer traffic. Other UDRP panels have routinely found typosquatted domain names like these to be “confusingly similar” for purposes of a finding under the UDRP. See Edmonds.com, Inc. v. Yingkun Guo, dba This domain name is 4 sale, WIPO Case No. D2006-0694 (<edunds.com>); Disney Enterprises, Inc. v. John Zuccarini, Cupcake City and Cupcake Patrol, WIPO Case No. D2001-0489 (<disneychanel.com>, <disneywolrd.com>, <walddisney.com>); see also Credit Karma, Inc. v. Domain Admin, WhoIs Privacy Corp., WIPO Case No. D2017-0194 (<credidkarma.com>).
The Panel therefore finds that the disputed domain name is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark in which Complainant has rights in accordance with paragraph (4)(a)(i) of the Policy.
The Panel next considers whether Complainant has shown that Respondent has no “rights or legitimate interest” as must be proven to succeed in a UDRP dispute. Paragraph 4(c) of the Policy gives examples that might show rights or legitimate interests in a domain name. These examples include: (i) use of the domain name “in connection with a bona fide offering of goods or services”; (ii) demonstration that respondent has been “commonly known by the domain name”; or (iii) “legitimate noncommercial or fair use of the domain name, without intent for commercial gain to misleadingly divert consumers or to tarnish the trademark or service mark at issue”.
No evidence has been presented to the Panel that might support a claim of Respondent’s rights or legitimate interests in the disputed domain name, and Respondent has no license from, or other affiliation with, Complainant.
Therefore, the Panel finds that Complainant has provided prima facie evidence of Respondent’s lack of rights or legitimate interests in accordance with paragraph 4(a)(ii) of the Policy which Respondent has not rebutted.
There are several ways that a complainant can demonstrate that a domain name was registered and used in bad faith. For example, paragraph 4(b)(iv) of the Policy states that bad faith can be shown where “by using the domain name [respondent has] intentionally attempted to attract, for commercial gain, Internet users to [respondent’s] website or other online location, by creating a likelihood of confusion with the complainant’s mark as to the source, sponsorship, affiliation, or endorsement of [respondent’s] website or location or of a product or service on [the] website or location”. As noted in Section 4 of this Panel’s decision, the disputed domain name has been used to redirect to a webpage offering adult entertainment services that compete with those offered by Complainant.
Hence, Respondent is trading on the goodwill of Complainant’s trademarks to attract Internet users, presumably for Respondent’s own commercial gain.
The disputed domain name incorporates an obvious misspelling of Complainant’s well-known ONLY FANS mark, and the Panel finds sufficient evidence that Respondent registered and has used the disputed domain name with knowledge of Complainant’s prior rights in the mark. See, Fenix International Limited v. Registration Private, Domains by Proxy, LLC/Name Redacted, WIPO Case No. D2020-1517 (transferring <onlyfans.tv> and <onlyfanstv.com>); Fenix International Limited v. Perfect Privacy, LLC, Chad Moston, Speedplexer, WIPO Case No. D2020-1162 (transferring <oniyfans.com>); Fenix International Limited v. c/o WhoisPrivacy.com, Tulip Trading Company, Tulip Trading Company Limited, WIPO Case No. DCO2020-0038. (transferring <onlyfans.co>)
Therefore, the Panel finds that Respondent registered and used the disputed domain name in bad faith for purposes of paragraph (4)(a)(iii) of the Policy.
For the foregoing reasons, in accordance with paragraphs 4(i) of the Policy and 15 of the Rules, the Panel orders that the disputed domain name <onlyfanq.com> be transferred to Complainant.
Lorelei Ritchie
Sole Panelist
Date: March 24, 2021