Slipknot’s legal maneuver to take over the slipknot dot com URL has hit a speed bump, as the domain owner has hired a lawyer and declared that it intends to battle the band in court for control of the website.
The metal band initiated a lawsuit last month claiming an anonymous cybersquatter is selling counterfeit merchandise on slipknot.com. The case was brought under the Anti-Cybersquatting Consumer Protection Act, a 1999 federal law that allows intellectual property owners to seize control of infringing domain names.
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Cybersquatting lawsuits often target anonymous site owners who do not respond to the allegations, leading courts to enter no-show default judgments and transfer the domain names without a fight. Big-name brands like Facebook, Verizon and Nintendo have all won these kinds of default rulings over the years.
Slipknot’s lawyers might have expected a default win in this case, since the identity of slipknot.com’s operator is not known. But the anonymous site owner has hired a lawyer: Jeff Neuman, a Virginia-based attorney who specializes in internet domain policy.
“Claimant is the lawful and long-time registrant of the domain name, having continuously owned and maintained it for approximately 24 years,” wrote Neuman in a Wednesday (Nov. 5) court filing.
Neuman says he was just retained on Wednesday (Nov. 5), after the operating entity Slipknot Online Services Ltd. learned about the lawsuit and the risk of a default judgment. He’s asking a judge to push back deadlines so he can review the case and protect his client’s interests.
“Claimant expressly reserves all defenses … including but not limited to challenges to jurisdiction, ownership, priority and any alleged bad-faith intent to profit,” Neuman wrote. “Counsel acted promptly to file this motion the same day to preserve claimant’s rights.”
Neuman declined to comment on the matter on Thursday (Nov. 6), telling Billboard that he is “still getting up to speed on everything.” A lawyer for Slipknot also declined to comment.
Slipknot’s lawsuit, filed on Oct. 15 in Virginia federal court, claims slipknot.com hosts pay-for-click advertising that directs users to counterfeit band apparel and other merch. These sponsored links trick unwitting Slipknot fans who are looking online for official band merch, the complaint alleges.
The metal band says the cybersquatting here is intentional. Slipknot has been actively recording and touring since the 1990s, and the lawsuit claims its anonymous adversary registered the slipknot.com domain in 2001, after the band rose to prominence.
