In Japan, where the total number of .jp domain name registration recently reached 800,000, a-kaiwa.net, which offers online services for finding English teachers, filed a lawsuit at the Yokohama District Court against its rival FindaNet, Ltd., which registered four names similar to its own signs, such as a-kaiwa.com. The Japan Unfair Competition Prevention Law stipulates that "acquiring and using the same or similar domain for the purpose of damaging others or obtaining illegal profits is unfair competition."
The Yokohama District Court first issued a provisional disposition order to prohibit the defendant from using similar domain names, saying "the company took advantage of [the plaintiff's] ability to attract customers and it can be assumed that it had the purpose of gaining illegal benefit by doing so", according to the report by the Daily Yomiuri Online. Now the court is expected to present a compromise settlement plan in the lawsuit involving a-kaiwa.net and FindaNet late next month.
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