.EU Domain
A few days ago the Community regulations related to said
domain names were published. The registration of these domain
names is reserved to companies and individuals residing
in the European Union.
The .EU domain will gain a considerable importance and offer
great visibility to the companies that operate in the European
market; it is therefore important to consider protecting
your own distinctive signs also under that extension.
Up to this moment the definitive requirements, time limits
and operative technical procedures have not been disclosed,
although it has meanwhile been ascertained that public institutions
and owners of pre-existing rights, who are recognized or
provided for by national or Community rules, will have the
possibility to apply for the registration prior to the beginning
of the general registration (sunrise period), approximately
from December 2004.
During the sunrise period, it seems that the ‘first
come, first served’ rule will apply. Therefore, even
in the light of the recent widening of the European Community,
and of the deriving extension of rights that will be thus
valid on a Community level, we strongly recommend
that you do not wait to protect your distinctive signs.
In view of the foregoing, we remind you that it
is currently impossible to obtain an actual pre-registration
of domain
names with a .EU extension, as there is not yet an operative
register nor an actual official recognition of the operators
in this field. Therefore, as long as the above-explained
situation is maintained, you should beware of any possibility
that you may be offered to pre-register .EU domain names,
since such a pre-registration has no validity before the
competent Authority.
In any case, we recommend that you inform
us of your interest in any of the foregoing by contacting us
promptly.
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