Dell Wins Judgment Against Domain Name Cybersquatter; Consent Decree Shuts Down Korean Web Site That Wrongfully Used The Dell Name

Business Wire, Feb 2, 2001

Business Editors & High-Tech/Legal Writers

AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 2, 2001

The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia has granted Dell (Nasdaq:DELL) a favorable consent judgment against DELLKOREA.COM for violating the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act of 1999.

Dell learned of the Web site in November 2000 and filed a civil action in December alleging DELLKOREA.COM infringed and diluted Dell's distinctive trademark. The Web site marketed and sold a variety of computer systems and equipment. The court granted Dell a temporary restraining order days after the case was filed, and subsequently issued a preliminary injunction transferring ownership of the domain name to Dell pending trial. As a result of the final judgment entered late Thursday, the court shut down the Web site and ordered "all right, title, and interest in and to the domain name registration for DELLKOREA.COM be permanently transferred to Dell."

"By registering Dell's trademark as a domain name, the defendant misappropriated Dell's name and marks and created confusion with our customers," said Tom Green, Dell's general counsel. "As we continue to grow in Korea and internationally, our position has been -- and will continue to be -- to take an active and aggressive role in protecting our trademarks and copyrights."

The Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act provides remedies against bad faith intent to profit, register, traffic or otherwise use a domain name that is identical or confusingly similar to a distinctive or famous name.

Dell opened an office in South Korea in September 1995, and today sells its line of servers, storage products, corporate notebooks and desktop computers, and services.

About Dell

Dell Computer Corporation (Nasdaq:DELL) is the world's leading direct computer systems company, based on revenues of $30 billion for the past four quarters, and is a premier provider of products and services required for customers to build their Internet infrastructures. The company ranks No. 56 on the Fortune 500, No. 154 on the Fortune Global 500 and No. 3 on the Fortune "most admired" lists of companies. Dell designs, manufactures and customizes products and services to customer requirements, and offers an extensive selection of software and peripherals. Information on Dell and its products can be obtained on the World Wide Web at www.dell.com.

Dell is a registered trademark of Dell Computer Corporation.

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