The courts have recently allowed claims of trademark infringement and unfair competition when an unrelated party has used the plaintiff's trademark as his domain name to conduct business on the Internet. Ancillary to this issue is whether a party may be sued in a state where his only contact is through his Website. Businesses now have access to millions of potential customers through the creation of Websites, which can be used to provide specific information about one's products and services to those who access the site. Interactive Websites have recently emerged, allowing customers to communicate directly with specific business or owner of a Website. Business are identified on the Internet through unique domain names.
Domain names consist of several levels.
The first level domain name identifies the type of organization. The second level domain name must be exclusive. The courts have consistently held that, in order to make out a claim of trademark infringement or dilution, a plaintiff must prove that the defendant has made a commercial use of the contested mark. The mere registering and use of a domain name as an e-mail address, for example, does not constitute a commercial use. It is not surprising that the courts have consistently held that the mere designation of domain names by Network Solutions, Inc.