Category: Disputes

Blizzard’s lawyers take control of Blizzard.tv domain, is there something in the works?

Post author By J.B.
Post date December 7, 2013

This week, the dispute over the Blizzard.tv name (Case Number: 1528644) was withdrawn after being filed with the National Arbitration Forum back in early November.

So, the question is, were the lawyers at Blizzard Entertainment just trying to defend their intellectual property or does the company have something more planned for Blizzard.tv?

Like, say, a potential competitor to the live game streaming service Twitch.tv.

Blizzard doesn’t often file disputes, and hadn’t filed a complaint since 2011 when it won the transfer of worldoflordcraft.com. So, why now?

Though the complainant in the Blizzard.tv dispute wasn’t officially revealed, it’s pretty much guaranteed that Blizzard Entertainment is behind it. At the time of this story, Blizzard.tv is registered to intellectual property law firm Christie, Parker & Hale LLP – the same firm that has represented Blizzard in past disputes for names like Blizzard-North.com (Claim Number: FA0302000146620). And since the complaint was withdrawn, the domain redirects visitors to Blizzard.com.

Often times, when a domain name complaint is withdrawn, both parties have come to an agreement. And because Blizzard had no guarantee of winning the dispute, it’s possible the previous registrant received some type of payment.

Whether Blizzard Entertainment has something in store for the domain, is only speculation at this point. But live game streaming has become very popular and Twitch has a virtual monopoly.

Last month, Blizzard live streamed an event on Battle.net, prompting one Reddit user to say, “Blizzard should make their own Twitch”.

Talking about this story: Ubergizmo, JudgeHype, Blizz Pro and OnGamers

(Image of StarCraft II Pro Players via Blizzard.com)

Tags Blizzard Entertainment, Blizzard.tv, eSports, Twitch

Disputes Featured Video Games WIPO

Complaint Denied: Take-Two loses another domain dispute, this time over GTA.tv

Post author By J.B.
Post date November 26, 2013

Take-Two Interactive Software had a pretty good track record in 2013 when it came to domain complaints, winning more than two dozen disputes over names like gtatv.com and betagtav.com.

But lately, the company has been running into trouble. The last two rulings have not gone in the company’s favor.

Take-Two recently lost a dispute over a domain name of a fake snuff website it used to own, and now a WIPO panel has denied its complaint over gta.tv, a three-letter domain name whose acronym is often interpreted as “Grand Theft Auto”, a pretty common term these days, which Take-Two seems to think it has a monopoly on.

Details of the ruling, which was posted online today, have yet to be released.

In 2012, Take-Two trademarked the terms “GTA TV” and “Rockstar TV”.

According to WHOIS records, the domain GTA.tv is registered to iCity Corp.

(Image of Grand Theft Auto V via Rockstargames.com)

Tags Grand Theft Auto V, GTA.tv, Take-Two

Disputes Featured News WIPO

Take-Two wins dispute for GTAtv.com domain name, GTA.tv case still pending

Post author By J.B.
Post date October 19, 2013

Video game company Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. won a domain name dispute (Case No. D2013-1434) for grandtheftautovideos.com, gtaextreme.com, gtarevolution.com and gtatv.com.

The decision comes shortly after Rockstar ruled out the possibility for a GTA 5 movie, but hinted at a TV show for the Grand Theft Auto series.

While a GTA TV show is all just rumor and speculation at this point, Take-Two has been filing complaints at related domains. In August 2013, Take-Two filed a dispute (Case No. DTV2013-0004) against the owner of the domain GTA.tv (WHOIS), however, a decision has yet to be issued.

A panelist with the World Intellectual Property Organization ordered gtatv.com and the other names transferred after finding the names were confusingly similar to Take-Two’s GTA trademarks, that the current owner had no rights or legitimate interests in any of the names, and that the names were registered in bad faith. The names had been listed for sale for prices ranging from $350 for grandtheftautovideos.com to $15,000 for gtatv.com.

All four names: grandtheftautovideos.com (WHOIS), gtaextreme.com (WHOIS), gtarevolution.com (WHOIS) and gtatv.com (WHOIS), are still registered to Domain Asset Holdings, which is operated by domain name pioneer Mike Mann. Mann made headlines in 2012 after registering 14,962 domains in 24 hours.

Tags Grand Theft Auto, GTA, GTA V, mike mann, Rockstar Games, Take-Two

Disputes Featured News Video Games WIPO

Manhunt 3? Take-Two goes after domain name of fake snuff website it used to own [UPDATED]

Post author By J.B.
Post date September 22, 2013

Much of the buzz surrounding Take-Two has been over the recent release of Grand Theft Auto V. What you may not know, though, is that Take-Two just filed a dispute over the domain name valiant-ent.tv (WHOIS), which used to be a fake snuff website used to promote the psychological horror video game Manhunt. The domain name and website were owned and operated by Rockstar Games for years, until the company let the name expire in 2011 and its new owner launched a petition site aimed at having Manhunt 3 developed.

Why go after the name after more than 2 years since it changed owners? Is Manhunt 3 in the works?

There have been rumors of Take-Two introducing a Manhunt 3 before, but the rumors were quickly eliminated.

Take-Two filed the dispute (WIPO Case Number: DTV2013-0006) over valiant-ent.tv this week with the World Intellectual Property Organization. The case follows a number of successful filings against owners of other Take-Two related domains like GTAV.com and GTA5BetaCode.com.

Today, the identity of valiant-ent.tv’s owner is private according to WHOIS records, but the petition site is online.

A message on the site reads, “I strongly believe that there is still a desire to make a new Manhunt game within at least one of Rockstar Game’s many studios, I think it’s just a matter of showing Take-Two Interactive (Rockstar’s parent company) that there is still a high demand.” Despite the current owner’s efforts, only 4 signatures have been received, as you can see in the screenshot below.

The fake snuff website (SCREENSHOT) once owned and operated by Take-Two may or may not be coming back. Even if Take-Two wins the dispute and takes control of the domain, it’s only speculation that the video game company might one day release a Manhunt 3.

On a sidenote, if Take-Two decides to release a Manhunt sequel, they do own Manhunt3.com and Manhunt4.com.

UPDATE 2: Take-Two’s complaint over the domain name Valiant-Ent.tv has been denied by a sole panelist. Details of the ruling can be found here.

UPDATE 1:. Be advised, the Valiant-Ent website has devolved into graphic content since this story first broke earlier today. Do not visit the website unless you are prepared for adult content.

Talking about this story: Kotaku and Bloody Disgusting

Tags Manhunt, Manhunt 2, Manhunt 3, Take-Two

Disputes Featured News Video Games WIPO

Take-Two quickly takes control of GTAV.com domain name following complaint

Post author By J.B.
Post date August 16, 2013

Well that was quick. Just over a week ago, Take-Two filed a domain dispute against the owner of GTAV.com with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

Though decisions can take up to several months to be reached, it appears the previous registrant handed over the name to Take-Two ahead of a ruling.

According to WHOIS records, Rockstar Games has become the new owner of the domain name within the last 24 hours. And the timing couldn’t have been better for gaming company Rockstar Games, as Grand Theft Auto V (GTA V) is due out for release very soon. Here’s a look at the GTAV.com WHOIS record:

It’s entirely possible Take-Two shelled out some cash to get the name, but chances are we’ll never know the back story since the complaint will likely end up being officially withdrawn in the next few days.

At the time of this story, the case still shows active on WIPO’s website.

On August 15 August 2013, the first official gameplay video for the multiplayer feature of the game was released.

You can watch the video below to see what all the buzz is about.

(Image of Grand Theft Auto V via RockstarGames.com)

Tags Grand Theft Auto V, gtav.com, Rockstar Games, Take-Two Interactive