Region: United Kingdom

From November 2002 Nominet will broaden the ambit of information it discloses relating to '.uk' domain name registrations, as contained in its WHOIS database. Website operators are worried that these changes will put their privacy at risk, exposing them to identity theft.

17 July 2002

The English High Court has issued an unusual decision in the case of <i>Metalrax Group v Vanci</i>, granting an injunction to prevent the defendant from reacquiring a domain name he had lost, rather than waiting for the defendant to acquire the name and then ordering its transfer.

05 July 2002

In the final chapter to the saga regarding use of the acronym 'WWF', the World Wrestling Federation has changed its company and domain names, leaving the domain name 'wwf.com' for the World Wide Fund for Nature (formerly the World Wildlife Fund).

14 June 2002

Nominet, the registry for all domain names ending '.uk', is the subject of a website campaign against its plan to make publicly available the addresses of those who register or have already registered domain names.

22 May 2002

Nominet.uk has issued a warning to Scottish businesses that the '.sc' domain, being marketed as a Scottish domain, is in fact the country code of the Seychelles. Nominet notes that while there is nothing wrong with a '.sc' domain name, people should know what they are getting when they register.

18 April 2002

The World Wrestling Federation has vowed to appeal a ruling by the UK Court of Appeal, which upheld a previous court order that the World Wide Fund for Nature (formerly the World Wildlife Fund) was entitled to the exclusive use of the initials 'WWF'.

25 March 2002

Nominet UK, the registry for the country-code top-level domain, has introduced '.me.uk' - the first new second-level domain to be introduced since Nominet began operating the registry in 1996. The new addressing space is intended for individual internet users in the United Kingdom.

19 February 2002

Radio Taxis, which takes bookings for London black cabs by telephone and on its website 'RadioTaxis.co.uk', has failed in an attempt before the High Court to win the domain name 'RadioTaxis.com' from its rival Dial-A-Cab.

01 February 2002

A UK court has delivered its decision in the case of <i>World Wide Fund for Nature v World Wrestling Federation Entertainment</i>. The outcome is expected to serve as a warning to others as to the problems that might arise through name sharing - even if the parties' business activities are entirely different.

30 January 2002

For the first time, the Court of Appeal has set out the requirements for registration of a trademark based on use of the mark on the Internet. There must be some active promotion of the website to the UK public.

18 October 2001