Freeman wins rights to cyberspace name

Oscar winning actor Morgan Freeman won control of the internet domain name www.morganfreeman.com in a ruling issued by a United Nations panel.

Arbitrators for the World Intellectual Property Organisation ordered the transfer of the domain name to the American actor, who had complained that it was being used in bad faith to divert internet traffic to a commercial search engine.

The ruling, made in Geneva on Thursday, upheld Freeman’s complaint against the company that registered the name – Mighty LLC, of Charlestown, Saint Kitts and Nevis.

Arbitrator Peter Nitter noted that he had no response from Mighty LLC, but said that the company “is using the domain name for its commercial benefit to lure internet users to its website.”

Nitter said the use of a Morgan Freeman web address creates a “likelihood of confusion” and suggests Freeman may be authorising or sponsoring the website.

Freeman, who won the best supporting actor Oscar for his performance in Million Dollar Baby, registered his name in 1964 with the Screen Actors Guild and applied last year to the US Patent and Trademark Office to trademark his name. The trademark application is still pending.

A number of celebrities have already won the internet version of their names back through UN arbitration, including Julia Roberts, Madonna, Nicole Kidman, Pamela Anderson, Pierce Brosnan and Carmen Electra.

Anyone can register a domain name for a few dollars, which has led so-called cybersquatters.

The UN arbitration system, which started in 1999, allows those who think they have the right to a domain to get it back without having to fight a costly legal battle or pay large sums of money.