The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court in Northern California, accuses Citrix of trademark infringement, cybersquatting and unfair trade competition, and centers around a new WebEx product line called My WebEx PC.
On Jan. 24, WebEx announced the launch of the new product line, which enables users to remotely access their computers. WebEx claims that on the same day, Citrix registered up to 10 domains using variations such as mywebexpcfree.com.
According to the suit, Citrix also had previously registered a number of domains with variations of the name “AccessAnywhere,” which WebEx had once considered naming its new service.
Citrix offers a similar line of products under the name GoToMyPC. In a prepared statement, a WebEx spokesperson said he suspected Citrix was upset because his company’s product was being offered for free, while Citrix’s charged $19 per month.
WebEx is seeking damages, lawyers fees and an injunction to prevent the domain names from being used. All the contested domains are currently inactive.
Cybersquatting disputes have become more common recently as companies have used the practice in an attempt to undermine competition. In most cases, companies buy the domains with the intent of later selling them to interested parties.
The organization charged with overseeing domain registries, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, adopted a measure allowing trademark holders to reclaim domain names that others have registered in bad faith.
However, ultimate authority in domain name disputes lies with federal courts.