Nintendo loses WiiU.com domain dispute
UPDATE: "We are continuing to review our legal options," Nintendo says.
UPDATE: Nintendo has told Eurogamer that it will continue to fight for the WiiU.com domain despite its defeat via the WIPO, and continue looking at other legal options.
"Nintendo's efforts to recover the domain name WiiU.com through a Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy administrative proceeding were unsuccessful," a spokesperson said. "Nintendo has a strong history of protecting against infringement of our intellectual property rights and we are continuing to review our legal options.
"This decision does not impact Nintendo's ability to enforce against violations concerning intellectual property."
ORIGINAL STORY: Wii U manufacturer Nintendo has failed to secure the domain name WiiU.com despite filing a cybersquatting complaint.
Such matters are decided by the World Intellectual Property Organisation, which has refused to gift the website to Nintendo, Fusible reported.
WiiU.com has been in existance since 2004, years before Wii U was ever announced. The domain came up for auction this February - at which point Nintendo launched its legal proceedings, rather than bid for it outright.
Had the company done so back then it may have avoided a more expensive settlement, and although Nintendo probably felt it deserved the domain, there are previous cases in this area.
Back in 2006, Nintendo was forced to pay out a lump sum to the anonymous owner of Wii.com, a figure suggested to have been in the six digit-area. The company now has few other options but to do the same for WiiU.com.
Why not register the domains sooner? Well, buying domain names ahead of time is a sure-fire way for a company to leak its new product's name. Sony is still not the owner of PlayStation4.com, while Microsoft is currently fighting for control of XboxOne.com and XboxOne.net.
We've asked Nintendo for comment.