Domain Registry of Canada adopts “aggressive use of law” to silence critics

Adopting a best-defence-is-a-strong-offence approach to a bitter domain name registry dispute, a prominent web registry is suing Tucows Inc. for more than $20 million over statements it claims are false and defamatory. The case stems from a longstanding debate over a practice some have claimed is tantamount to "slamming" – the switching of customers from one provider of services, especially telephony, to another by dubious means – and warnings issued by Tucows that Domain Registry of Canada is engaged in the practice. In recent weeks, Tucows and a number of other domain name registries have stepped up warnings to consumers that a company called Domain Registry of Canada or Domain Registry of America Inc. (DRC) has been sending renewal letters to its customers that are intentionally designed to appear official. In one case, a Tucows subsidiary, Domain Direct, posted a bulletin reading: "A company calling itself Domain Registry of Canada or Domain Registry of America is targeting Domain Direct customers to renew their domains early. They are sending renewal notices through regular mail in an envelope and on stationery intentionally designed to appear to be an official government notice… "It has been brought to our attention that these letters have been causing a great deal of confusion among our customers… "You absolutely SHOULD NOT send any money to "Domain Registry of Canada/Domain Registry of America" in order to renew your domain… "In other words, you will end up paying for a service you did not want, from a company you didn’t choose to deal with, while potentially losing service from Domain Direct."DRC claims in the suit to have received a letter from Tucows’ outside legal counsel advising the company that it was violating rules governing Internet registration databases by compiling lists of Tucows customers, and targeting them with phony "renewal notices." In response, DRC has filed a lawsuit in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice seeking $10 million in general damages, $10 million in special damages, $1 million in aggravated and exemplary damages, as well as a permanent injunction against further similar notices, for the alleged defamation. DRC lawyer Joseph D’Angelo of Lang Michener tells Canadian NEW MEDIA that the suit is serious and that DRC fully intends to go to court with it, adding that DRC has suffered a loss of reputation at the hands of Tucows and its allies. False and defamatory statements "You’ve seen the statements that are set out in the statement of claim," D’Angelo says. "As far as we’re concerned, they’re false and defamatory, so we have no choice but to bring the action to try to stop those statements." Asked whether the case is likely to go to trial, D’Angelo answers: "That’s hard to say. Nowadays a lot of litigation settles ahead of time, and I’ve certainly been involved in cases that certainly do go to court, so I just can’t predict. Anything can happen, but at this point in time, the intention is obviously to take it all the way." Brenda Lazare, in-house counsel at Tucows, would not comment on the matter. The case has surprised some observers who recognize that there has been an outcry about slamming practices in the Internet service sector for several years. A court appearance by the parties will certainly put DRC’s business practices under the microscope. Agreeing that DRC’s business case is controversial, University of Ottawa Internet law expert Michael Geist says: "If one thinks of the law being a shield or a sword from certain activities, this is very much the sword mentality or the sword version. It’s an aggressive use of the law and an attempt to, I suppose, stop some of the negative publicity the company has been experiencing. My understanding is that some of the adverse publicity is coming not just from people like Tucows, but from people like the fair practices branch of the Competition Bureau." While there is no known investigation by federal authorities into DRC’s activities, the government has moved in the past against improper billings. One year ago, the Competition Bureau issued a media release warning that a company called the Internet Registry of Canada was issuing invoices for the registration or re-registration of .ca domains, despite not being an organization authorized to do so by the Canadian Internet Registration Authority. The DRC and other cases highlight a problem with the Canadian Internet registry database, which provides comprehensive information about domain name registrants, similar to a phone book. As some companies misuse the system to develop marketing databases from the information, changes are on tap to the system to prevent the disclosure of personal information.

Domain Registry of Canada adopts “aggressive use of law” to silence critics

News | 07/25/2002 4:00 am EDT

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