.eu and EURid: Fee changes to .eu dispute proceedings

The Czech Arbitration Court (CAC) and .eu registry EURid today announce a special fee reduction to make the .eu Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) process even more accessible to the European public. The cost of a basic proceeding is cut by 50% and the new fee structure is valid for six months from 1 July 2012.

This move comes in response to recommendations made in an external audit of the .eu ADR service prepared for EURid. The .eu ADR procedure is functioning well but, according to the audit, a fee reduction would further raise the visibility of the service and improve access.

“The Czech Arbitration Court is the out-of-court institution appointed to rule on .eu domain name proceedings. We hope that the new fee structure will help even more people resolve their disputes with respect to contested .eu domain name registrations,” said Board Member of the Czech Arbitration Court, Petr Hostas.

EURid’s General Manager, Marc Van Wesemael, added, “At EURid, we enable anyone with a legitimate prior rights claim to challenge a .eu registration. Making the .eu ADR process more available, especially to Europe’s small businesses, by lowering the fee during 2012 is one way of doing this.”

EURid also plans to engage with the European Company Lawyers Association (ECLA) to help raise awareness about using .eu proceedings as a quick alternative to formal court hearings or litigation. In the same spirit, the CAC plans to enhance the .eu ADR online platform and procedural routines.

Why ADR

People can challenge a .eu registration if they believe they have a prior right to the domain name and the current holder has registered the name for speculative or abusive purposes. Although they can do this through a European court, EURid offers the fast and convenient .eu ADR procedure through the independent CAC. No travel is required as all cases are conducted online and by email, and in 21 official EU languages. Cases take an average of four months to resolve.

EURid appointed the CAC in 2005 as its ADR provider. In order to make .eu ADR decisions, the CAC selects one or more panellists from its list of 136 accredited international experts.

In numbers

During 2011, 47 .eu ADR cases were filed and 42 decisions were published, of which 38, or 90%, were in favour of the complainant. In total since .eu’s launch in 2005, there have been over 1 000 .eu proceedings.

More information about the new .eu ADR price structure is available at: http://eu.adr.eu.

About ADR.eu at the Czech Arbitration Court

ADR.eu is an arbitration centre for .eu disputes. ADR.eu is a service of the Czech Arbitration Court (CAC) based in Prague, the Czech Republic. ADR.eu is the only ADR provider for .eu domain name disputes. ADR.eu helps brand and trademark owners, domain name registrants and registration companies all over the world to resolve conflicts in a fast, efficient and cost-effective fashion.

The CAC is a non-profit organisation attached to the Czech Chamber of Commerce and the Agricultural Chamber of the Czech Republic. Established in 1949, CAC manages domestic and international commercial disputes related inter alia to IP and technology matters. In 2011, CAC administered over 3 000 arbitration proceedings. Proceedings are managed in 21 of the official EU languages. More information at http://eu.adr.eu (http://www.adr.eu) and http://www.soud.cz.

About .eu and EURid

The .eu domain ranks among the ten largest top-level domains in the world, connecting 500 million people in 27 EU countries to one Internet identity. More than three million .eu names have been registered since the domain opened for registration in 2005. Many companies use a .eu website as a practical solution to convey a clear European identity, including Bridgestone, Century 21, Hyundai, the MAN Group, Microsoft Corporation and the UniCredit Group.

EURid is the not-for-profit organisation appointed by the European Commission to operate the .eu top-level domain. EURid works with over 850 accredited registrars and provides support in the 23 official EU languages. With headquarters in Brussels (Belgium), EURid also has regional offices in Pisa (Italy), Prague (the Czech Republic) and Stockholm (Sweden). More information at http://www.eurid.eu.

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