WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center

ADMINISTRATIVE PANEL DECISION

Accenture Global Services Limited v. Jean Franca

Case No. D2020-2223

1. The Parties

The Complainant is Accenture Global Services Limited, Ireland, represented by McDermott Will & Emery LLP, United States of America (“United States”).

The Respondent is Jean Franca, France.

2. The Domain Name and Registrar

The disputed domain name <eservice-accenture-uk.com> is registered with Ligne Web Services SARL (the “Registrar”).

3. Procedural History

The Complaint was filed in English with the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center (the “Center”) on August 21, 2020. On August 25, 2020, the Center transmitted by email to the Registrar a request for registrar verification in connection with the disputed domain name. On August 31, 2020, the Registrar transmitted by email to the Center its verification response confirming that the Respondent is listed as the registrant and providing the contact details.

The Center sent an email communication in English and French to the Parties on August 31, 2020 regarding the language of the proceeding. On September 2, 2020, the Complainant filed a request for English to be the language of the proceeding. The Respondent did not comment on the language of the proceeding.

The Center verified that the Complaint satisfied the formal requirements of the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Policy” or “UDRP”), the Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Rules”), and the WIPO Supplemental Rules for Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Supplemental Rules”).

In accordance with the Rules, paragraphs 2 and 4, the Center formally notified the Respondent in English and French of the Complaint, and the proceedings commenced on September 8, 2020. In accordance with the Rules, paragraph 5, the due date for Response was September 28, 2020. The Respondent did not submit any response. Accordingly, the Center notified the Respondent’s default on September 29, 2020.

The Center appointed Matthew Kennedy as the sole panelist in this matter on October 2, 2020. The Panel finds that it was properly constituted. The Panel has submitted the Statement of Acceptance and Declaration of Impartiality and Independence, as required by the Center to ensure compliance with the Rules, paragraph 7.

4. Factual Background

The Complainant is a provider of management consulting and other services. The Complainant holds multiple ACCENTURE trademark registrations in multiple jurisdictions, including United States trademark registration number 3,091,811 for ACCENTURE, registered on May 16, 2006, with a priority date of October 6, 2000, specifying goods and services in classes 9, 16, 35, 36, 37, 41 and 42. That trademark registration remains current. The Complainant also registered the domain name <accenture.com> on August 29, 2000 and uses it in connection with its official website where it provides information about itself. The Complainant’s ACCENTURE mark has been included in Interbrand’s Best Global Brands Reportsince 2002 and in WPP/Kantar’s BrandZ – Top 100 Brand Ranking (of the most valuable United States brands) since 2006.

The Respondent is an individual with a false or incomplete contact address in the Registrar’s WhoIs database.

The disputed domain name was registered on July 24, 2020. It does not resolve to any active website; rather, it is passively held.

5. Parties’ Contentions

A. Complainant

The disputed domain name is confusingly similar to the Complainant’s ACCENTURE mark.

The Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the disputed domain name. “Accenture” is not a generic or descriptive term in which the Respondent might have an interest. The Respondent is neither affiliated with, nor has it been licensed or permitted to use, the Complainant’s ACCENTURE mark or any domain names incorporating the ACCENTURE mark.

The disputed domain name was registered and is being used in bad faith. Given the Complainant’s worldwide reputation and the ubiquitous presence of the ACCENTURE mark on the Internet, it is clear that the Respondent was aware of the ACCENTURE mark long prior to registering the disputed domain name. There is no reason for the Respondent to have registered the disputed domain name other than to trade off the reputation and goodwill of the Complainant’s mark.

B. Respondent

The Respondent did not reply to the Complainant’s contentions.

6. Discussion and Findings

6.1 Language of the Proceeding

Paragraph 11(a) of the Rules provides that “unless otherwise agreed by the Parties, or specified otherwise in the Registration Agreement, the language of the administrative proceeding shall be the language of the Registration Agreement, subject to the authority of the Panel to determine otherwise, having regard to the circumstances of the administrative proceeding.” The Registrar confirmed that the Registration Agreement for the disputed domain name is in French.

The Complainant requests that the language of the proceeding be English. Its arguments are that the disputed domain name wholly incorporates an English-language company name and trademark which has no French equivalent, and that translation of the amended Complaint into French would force the Complainant to incur additional costs and expenses.

Paragraph 10(b) and (c) of the Rules requires the Panel to ensure that the Parties are treated with equality, that each Party is given a fair opportunity to present its case and that the administrative proceeding take place with due expedition. Prior UDRP panels have decided that the choice of language of the proceeding should not create an undue burden for the parties. See, for example, Solvay S.A. v. Hyun-Jun Shin, WIPO Case No. D2006-0593; Whirlpool Corporation, Whirlpool Properties, Inc. v. Hui’erpu (HK) electrical appliance co. ltd., WIPO Case No. D2008-0293.

The Panel observes that in this proceeding the Complaint was filed in English. Despite the Center having sent an email regarding the language of the proceeding, and the notification of the Complaint, in both French and English, the Respondent did not comment on the language or express any interest in participating in this proceeding. Therefore, the Panel considers that requiring the Complainant to translate the Complaint into French would create an undue burden and delay, whereas proceeding in English will not cause unfairness to either Party.

Having considered all the circumstances above, the Panel determines under paragraph 11(a) of the Rules that the language of this proceeding is English. The Panel would have accepted a formal Response in French, but none was filed.

6.2 Substantive Issues

Paragraph 4(a) of the Policy provides that a complainant must prove each of the following elements:

(i) the disputed domain name is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in which the complainant has rights; and

(ii) the respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the disputed domain name; and

(iii) the disputed domain name has been registered and is being used in bad faith.

A. Identical or Confusingly Similar

Based on the evidence submitted, the Panel finds that the Complainant has rights in the ACCENTURE mark.

The disputed domain name wholly incorporates the ACCENTURE mark. It also contains the elements “eservice” (short for “e-service”, a dictionary word meaning “electronic service”) and “uk” (an abbreviation for the United Kingdom), separated from the mark by hyphens. The mark remains clearly recognizable within the disputed domain name.

The only other element in the disputed domain name is the generic Top-Level Domain (“gTLD”) “.com”. As a technical requirement of registration, this element is generally disregarded in the comparison between a domain name and a trademark for the purposes of the first element of the Policy. See WIPO Overview of WIPO Panel Views on Selected UDRP Questions, Third Edition (“WIPO Overview 3.0”), section 1.11.

Therefore, the Panel finds that the disputed domain name is confusingly similar to a trademark in which the Complainant has rights. The Complainant has satisfied the first element in paragraph 4(a) of the Policy.

B. Rights or Legitimate Interests

Paragraph 4(c) of the Policy sets out the following circumstances which, without limitation, if found by the panel, shall demonstrate that the respondent has rights to, or legitimate interests in, a disputed domain name, for the purposes of paragraph 4(a)(ii) of the Policy:

(i) before any notice to [the respondent] of the dispute, [the respondent’s] use of, or demonstrable preparations to use, the [disputed] domain name or a name corresponding to the [disputed] domain name in connection with a bona fide offering of goods or services; or

(ii) [the respondent] (as an individual, business, or other organization) [has] been commonly known by the [disputed] domain name, even if [the respondent has] acquired no trademark or service mark rights; or

(iii) [the respondent is] making a legitimate noncommercial or fair use of the [disputed] domain name, without intent for commercial gain to misleadingly divert consumers or to tarnish the trademark or service mark at issue.

The Complainant states that the Respondent is neither affiliated with, nor has it been licensed or permitted to use, the Complainant’s ACCENTURE mark or any domain names incorporating the ACCENTURE mark.

The disputed domain name does not resolve to any active website; rather, it is passively held. The Panel does not consider that to be a bona fide offering of goods or services within the meaning of paragraph 4(c)(i) of the Policy. Nor is it a legitimate noncommercial or fair use of the disputed domain name within the meaning of paragraph 4(c)(iii) of the Policy.

The Respondent’s name is listed in the Registrar’s WhoIs database as “Jean Franca”, not “eservice-accenture-uk”. There is no evidence that the Respondent has been commonly known by the disputed domain name within the meaning of paragraph 4(c)(ii) of the Policy.

In summary, the Panel considers that the Complainant has made a prima facie case that the Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the disputed domain name. The Respondent failed to rebut that prima facie case because he did not respond to the Complainant’s contentions.

Therefore, based on the record of this proceeding, the Panel finds that the Respondent has no rights or legitimate interests in respect of the disputed domain name. The Complainant has satisfied the second element in paragraph 4(a) of the Policy.

C. Registered and Used in Bad Faith

Paragraph 4(b) of the Policy provides that certain circumstances shall be evidence of the registration and use of a domain name in bad faith but these circumstances are not exhaustive.

With respect to registration, the disputed domain name was registered in 2020, many years after the registration of the Complainant’s ACCENTURE trademark. “Accenture” is a coined word with no meaning other than as a reference to the Complainant, its goods and services, and its trademark. The evidence on record shows that the Complainant has developed a considerable reputation in its ACCENTURE mark through extensive use and promotion of that mark since 2001. The disputed domain name wholly incorporates that mark, separated from other elements by means of hyphens. In these circumstances, the Panel considers it highly likely that the Respondent knew of the Complainant’s mark at the time he registered the disputed domain name.

With respect to use, the Respondent currently makes only passive use of the disputed domain name but this does not preclude a finding of use in bad faith. See Telstra Corporation Limited v. Nuclear Marshmallows, WIPO Case No. D2000-0003. In the present dispute, the Complainant has developed a global reputation in its ACCENTURE mark through extensive use and promotion. The disputed domain name wholly incorporates that mark, combining it with other elements giving the false impression that it is associated with a site for electronic services provided by the Complainant in the United Kingdom. The Respondent has provided false or incomplete contact information in the Registrar’s WhoIs database. The Respondent provides no explanation of any potential use of the disputed domain name. Furthermore, the Panel is unable to determine any good faith use to which the disputed domain name may be put in the facts of this case. In all these circumstances, the Panel considers it more likely than not that the Respondent is using the disputed domain name in bad faith.

Therefore, the Panel finds that the disputed domain name has been registered and is being used in bad faith. The Complainant has satisfied the third element in paragraph 4(a) of the Policy.

7. Decision

For the foregoing reasons, in accordance with paragraphs 4(i) of the Policy and 15 of the Rules, the Panel orders that the disputed domain name <eservice-accenture-uk.com> be transferred to the Complainant.

Matthew Kennedy
Sole Panelist
Date: October 12, 2020