Tesla loses domain-squatting lawsuit against TeslaShop.com

Just recently, it was revealed by foreign media that Tesla lost a domain-squatting lawsuit launched against the owner of TeslaShop.com. The domain squatting case failed due to the dealer/affiliate exception.

teslashop.com was registered in October 2020, and "teslashop" is an English combination of "Tesla" + "shopping center".

The domain name resolves to the following page: (translated from Polish):

First of all, let's make one thing clear: we are crazy about Tesla. We love Tesla, we admire Tesla, and we are very happy to drive Tesla. We're also excited about the development of electric cars, which spark our imagination more than the gasoline car Seicento.

But we don't have to pretend. We also know the problems of users of these beautiful cars - including extremely expensive parts. That's where our business was born.

The panelists reviewing the matter noted that there is an exception in Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) cases that typically applies to a brand's service and parts suppliers.

Panelist Jeffrey M. Samuels evaluated the site and agreed that the domain name qualified for the exception. Notably, no reasonable person who visited the site would have thought that the domain name was operated by Tesla itself.

Therefore, the judge ruled that the domain owner had rights or legitimate interests in the domain name. He dismissed Tesla's claims and ordered that the domain name remained with the domain owner.

source:domainnamewire