Author: (JIANG CHEN)

A domain name dispute between a Chinese company and an Australian chemicals giant Orica Ltd is heating up with both sides refusing to compromise.
The two-month-old dispute centres on the ownership of www.chemnet.com, one of the hottest domain names in the chemical industry.

In a charge filed to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in late September, Australia's largest chemical company demanded that Hangzhou-based Hi2000 Infotech Inc hand back ownership of the domain name that it owned prior to August 30.

A final judgment from WIPO is expected on November 17, officials from both companies said.

Orica lost ownership of the domain name after it failed to renew its ownership status in time to its registration service provider on August 30.

The domain name was taken by DomainAgent.com the next day, a South Korea-based company, which sold the name to Hi2000 Infotech in a deal signed on September 3 in Shanghai.

Hi2000 Infotech, which has been operating www.chemnet.com.cn, is China's leading information consulting company in the chemical industry.

After realizing its oversight one week after losing its domain name, Orica sent a fax to the Chinese company on September 6, requesting that the domain name be returned since Chemnet was the company's legally registered trademark in Australia.

"When I received the fax from Orica, I thought it was an order. I was surprised because we had never done any business with the company," said Sun Deliang, the general manager of Hi2000 Infotech Inc.

Sun dismissed Orica's request as "groundless" and "ridiculous" since it bought the domain name in a "legal and justified way."

"We are definitely not going to sell or give up the domain name. We are ready for any charges because it's not Orica's right to use this domain name," he said.

Orica's corporation manager Michaela Healey declined to comment on the case, but stressed that Chemnet was the company's registered trademark in Australia.

An investigation initiated by Shanghai Patent and Trademark Law Office, which was hired by Orica to investigate the Hangzhou company, found there was no existing entity registered under the name of Hi2000 Infotech Inc and that the accused company had not used Chemnet as its trademark.

In the charge filed to the WIPO, Orica said the investigation had shown that the Chinese company was not the lawful owner of the domain name.

However, trademark and patent law experts said Orcia must prove the Hangzhou company has illegally registered the trademark and has been using it to generate profits.

"It is ridiculous if they try to say that we are a fake company or have engaged in any business that has hurt Orica's interests," Sun said. "We have been doing the same business before and after we bought the domain name," he added.

He said the Shanghai Patent and Trademark Law Office had failed to find the company's English name on the database because under China's current laws and regulations, companies must register their Chinese name in pinyin. The company's English name is still legal, although it does not appear in the government's registration documents or database, Sun said.

He said his company had obtained the necessary official document from the local government attesting that the company had been using the English name and operating www.chemnet.com.cn since the company was established in 1997.

"We are not a fabricated entity, but a real company registered with the government's approval," he said.

While the matter seems to be a simple case involving the ownership of a domain name, industry analysts say it has wider ramifications.

"A key reason that Hi2000 Infotech refused to sell the domain name is because the consulting business in China's chemistry industry has a promising future after China joins the World Trade Organization," a Beijing Internet analyst said.

Chemicals are a backbone industry in China, the third largest after textiles and machinery.

The chemnet domain name is an important marketing tool, according to analysts.

"With this domain name, Hi2000 Infotech is expecting to secure more business revenue from around the world," one analyst said. "It's understandable that Orica does not want to lose this domain name."

Hi2000 Infotech has seen its revenue skyrocketing over the past four years with its sales turnover soaring from 120,000 yuan (US$14,450) to 50 million yuan (US$6 million).

The Chinese company has seen its daily page views increase from 150,000 to 270,000 after it launched www.chemnet.com. Most of the increased page views come from abroad, statistics from the company indicated.

On October 30, an e-mail from WIPO said the organization had received a request from Orica's lawyers for a tentative suspension of the dispute.

"No matter what they want, we are very confident that we will win the case," Sun said.