Decision for dispute CAC-UDRP-107893

The Panel is not aware of any other legal proceedings which are pending or decided and which relate to the disputed domain name.

The Complainant is the owner of several registered trademarks for VEIKKAUS, including Finnish trademark registration no. 248158 (filed in 2005, registered in 2010, for several products and services in relation to amongst other games and lotteries).

The Complainant also owns several domain names incorporating the VEIKKAUS mark, such as <veikkaus.fi>, <veikkaus.com>, and <veikkaus.eu>.

The Complainant, Veikkaus Oy, is a Finnish state-owned company and the sole legal provider of betting, lottery, and gambling services in Finland.

The disputed domain name, <veikkaus.guru>, was registered on 6 December 2022. The website published at www.veikkaus.guru and shown in the Complainant's exhibits, is in Finnish and contains links to third-party gambling services, including online casinos that are not operated by Veikkaus Oy and are illegal under Finnish law, according to the Complainant.

The Complainant asserts that the Respondent is not affiliated with or authorized by Veikkaus Oy and that the Respondent is using the domain name to profit from the Complainant's reputation.

The Complainant contends that the requirements of the Policy have been met and that the disputed domain name should be transferred to it.

No administratively compliant Response has been filed.

The Complainant has, to the satisfaction of the Panel, shown the disputed domain name is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in which the Complainant has rights (within the meaning of paragraph 4(a)(i) of the Policy).

The Complainant has, to the satisfaction of the Panel, shown the Respondent to have no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the disputed domain name (within the meaning of paragraph 4(a)(ii) of the Policy).

The Complainant has, to the satisfaction of the Panel, shown the disputed domain name has been registered and is being used in bad faith (within the meaning of paragraph 4(a)(iii) of the Policy).

The Panel is satisfied that all procedural requirements under UDRP were met and there is no other reason why it would be inappropriate to provide a decision.

1. Identical or Confusingly Similar

The Complainant has demonstrated rights in the VEIKKAUS trademark.

The disputed domain name, <veikkaus.guru>, incorporates the Complainant’s mark in its entirety. The addition of the generic Top-Level Domain (gTLD) “.guru” does not prevent a finding of identity or confusing similarity.

The Panel finds that the disputed domain name is identical to the Complainant’s trademark.

2. No Rights or Legitimate Interests

The Complainant has made a prima facie case that the Respondent lacks rights or legitimate interests in the disputed domain name. The Respondent is not affiliated with the Complainant, is not authorized to use the VEIKKAUS mark, and is not commonly known by the disputed domain name.

The use of the disputed domain name to promote third-party gambling services, which are illegal in Finland and compete with the Complainant’s exclusive rights, does not constitute a bona fide offering of goods or services or a legitimate non-commercial or fair use.  To the contrary, the Respondent seems to make money by advertising in the Finish language gambling and lottery sites that are not lawful in Finland, by using the disputed domain name.

In the absence of a Response, the Panel finds that the Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in the disputed domain name.

3. Registered and Used in Bad Faith

The Complainant’s VEIKKAUS mark is distinctive and well-known in Finland, where the Complainant holds a statutory monopoly on gambling services. The Respondent’s registration and use of the disputed domain name, which is identical to the Complainant’s mark and used to promote gambling services that are illegal in Finland, demonstrates knowledge of the Complainant and intent to exploit the Complainant’s reputation for commercial gain.

There is a substantial risk that consumers who visit the websites promoted via the disputed domain name, are mistaken and believe that those sites are operated by or on behalf of the Compainant. The disputed domain may cause serious harm to the Complainant’s strongly regulated business and even to the Finnish consumers.

The Respondent’s conduct falls within the circumstances of bad faith registration and use as set out in paragraph 4(b)(iv) of the Policy: using the domain name to intentionally attract, for commercial gain, Internet users by creating a likelihood of confusion with the Complainant’s mark as to the source, sponsorship, affiliation, or endorsement of the website.

In the absence of a Response, the Panel finds that the disputed domain name was registered and is being used in bad faith.