licensing trademark
Is it legal to use &quot;Java&quot; in a domain name for a website?
<p>I want to register a domain (within Poland) that contains "Java" word in it. Am I allowed to it, or is it illegal?</p>

<p>I heard about the case of Vavr (formerly Javaslang) which changed the name due to trademark issues - <a href="http://blog.vavr.io/javaslang-changes-name-to-vavr/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">http://blog.vavr.io/javaslang-changes-name-to-vavr/</a></p>

<p>Does this law works globally or just in few countries? Is it ok to use "Java" in a domain in Poland?</p>

<p><strong>Update 11/16/18</strong></p>

<p>Per the comments, using the term Java in an online course about the language would almost certainly draw scrutiny from Oracle.</p>

<hr>

<p><a href="https://www.oracle.com/legal/trademarks.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Trademarks | Legal | Oracle</a> says this:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p><strong>Domain Names</strong> Do not use Oracle trademarks or potentially confusing variations in your Internet domain name. This helps prevent Internet
  users from being confused as to whether you or Oracle is the source of
  the Web site.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>That could be viewed as a warning of potential litigation. Oracle is a worldwide company with deep pockets, so as in your example, they will litigate over a business or product name. If your domain is related to software, beware. Poland is a member of the European Union, so EU laws apply in Poland. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trade_mark_law_of_the_European_Union" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Trade mark law of the European Union - Wikipedia</a>.</p>

<p>If you're selling coffee or trips to Indonesia, you're more likely to be safe.</p>

<p>If you're planning on using the URL to do anything related to the programming language or the software platform, you should probably be prepared for a cease-and-desist letter.</p>

<p>I had similar concerns so I contacted with Oracle via email. This is their response:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Dear Tomek,</p>
<p>Thank you for contacting us.  Oracle does not approve proposals to adopt domain names containing the Java trademark.  Our goal as the owner and steward of the Java trademark is to preserve a level playing field among members of the Java community, and we have a concern that users might mistakenly believe the site to be affiliated with Oracle based on the domain name.  Thank you for reviewing our Third Party Usage Guidelines for Oracle Trademarks at <a href="https://www.oracle.com/legal/trademarks.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://www.oracle.com/legal/trademarks.html</a> before writing to us.  We recommend that you choose a name that complies with our guidelines.  We appreciate your dedication to Java technology and we wish you the best on your blog.</p>
<p>Regards,
Oracle Trademark &amp; Copyright Legal Group</p>
</blockquote>
