Microsoft Files Dispute Against Current Owner of XboxOne.com

Microsoft might have one of the most talked-about products at the moment with the Xbox One, but would you believe it doesn't own the rights to the most obvious domain name to accompany it? Domain squatting is a real issue for companies about to launch a new product. If they register a domain before the official launch, people can find that and subsequently ruin the company's surprise. There's a fine-line here, to be sure.

This particular case is different, however; the domain name wasn't registered just the other day. Instead, a UK resident registered the name XboxOne.com in December of 2011, long before Microsoft itself even likely had a definitive name for its upcoming console. So, what can a company do in this instance? File a dispute with the National Arbitration Forum, an ICANN-approved organization that specializes in dealing with these sorts of matters.

At the moment, XboxOne.com isn't being used for anything, so it's in effect a squat. This could work towards Microsoft's favor, since the registrant likely registered the domain only in hopes of it becoming useful to Microsoft down the road. Further, the company can also use the defense that the domain name is going to be confusing to consumers - and that seems like a good argument. I'm sure the number of people who've already tried to go to XboxOne.com has been rather high.

Given the factors that the National Arbitration Forum looks at, Microsoft's case here looks good. So, we'll see if it does manage to gain access to this prized domain, or if it's going to have to resort to shelling out some cash in order to snatch it from the current owner's grasp.