ABSTRACT
Even before ICANN was seeking ways to institutionalise domain name conflicts internationally, Congress was exploring tools to combat cybersquatting within the American trademark law regime. The first attempt, which sought to address abusive domain name registrations via the Lanham Act – the U.S. trademark law statute – was deemed ineffective and portrayed the need to examine cybersquatting as a separate cause of action, instead of one linked with classic trademark infringement or dilution. This course of action was in concert with the vision of the U.S. DoC and INTA – the main forces behind ICANN’s UDRP – and the political decisions reached then exemplify a close nexus between the UDRP and the way the American trademark law regime decided to address cybersquatting.
