Stefan Mileschin

Intel's attempts to take the domains of two companies which it claimed were stealing its own have backfired.

Intel lawyers went to Mexico to take on two companies who happened to have the world Intel in their business names and their domains.

Both of the domains are registered to different people in Sonora, Mexico and are not chip companies.

Domainnamewire reports IntelCompras.com had 120,000 visitors on average per month and sales in excess of 24 million pesos during 2011.

The owner said he chose the name Intel because it is shorthand for intelligence, so the name means "Intelligent Buy".

Intelsitio.com is owned by a company that provides web services and the owner said more or less the same thing. The name means "intelligent site".

Had Chipzilla won, it would have closed two established businesses internet businesses. Its briefs were trying to use the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) to do it.

Those rules were designed for clear cut cases of abusive cybersquatting.

Intel did not try to take the companies down in an unfair competition or trademark claims. The UDRP ruled that the case was not cybersquatting and it told Intel to sling its hook.

http://news.techeye.net/business/int...ican-stand-off