• Messaging app Telegram launches auction of ‘rare’ usernames
• Handles on sale include those of major brand names and products
• Expert claims move is opportunity for “counterfeiters and scammers”

Popular messaging platform Telegram is auctioning thousands of short, rare and desirable usernames. The move has already seen listings for major brand names including Nike, Chanel, Facebook and Armani selling for tens of thousands of dollars – with one industry expert describing it as a prime opportunity for “counterfeiters and scammers”.

Launched in 2013, Telegram is a free cross-platform messaging app used on portable and desktop devices. It is currently used by 700 million active daily users and has grown by 300 million daily users since April 2020. As well as messaging, the app features voice and video calling, the ability to upload videos and files, groups and channels, the latter being a one-way messaging system that users can subscribe to and where only administrators can post messages. The channels are often used by organisations and public figures to share news, opinions and products for sale. These channels have been used for illegal activities, including trading illegal goods and services, and the platform has previously been described as a “home for criminals” and a “safe haven” for white supremacist groups.

At the end of October, Telegram announced that it was launching a marketplace on the Fragment platform to auction off rare usernames. It would be the first time that such short handles had become available to users (having previously been unavailable for registration). “Secure your name with blockchain in an ecosystem of 700+ million users and assign it as a link for your personal account, channel or group,” Telegram stated in a blog post at its launch, confirming that the handles could only be purchased via the Toncoin cryptocurrency.

At the time of going to press, a few hundred usernames have already been sold. At the top end, the ‘@news’ handle sold for 994,000 Toncoin (approximately $1.7 million), followed by ‘@auto’ ($1.5 million), ‘@bank’ ($1.4 million) and ‘@chat’ ($1.2 million).

Outside of generic terms, some of the biggest-selling usernames so far have been for terms that will be widely recognised as registered trademarks of major brands. For example, usernames that have sold for over $100,000 include ‘@fifa’ for 600,000 Toncoin ($1 million), ‘@meta’ (for $700,000), ‘@nike’ ($569,000), ‘@amazon’ ($450,000), ‘@adidas’ ($430,000), ‘@dior’ ($198,000), ‘@armani’ ($198,000), ‘@canon’ ($172,000), ‘@chanel’ ($155,000), ‘@pepsi’ ($134,000), ‘@audi’ ($103,000) and ‘@facebook’ ($103,000). Other brand usernames that have sold for thousands of dollars in the past couple of weeks include ‘@ford’, ‘@hsbc’, ‘@forbes’, ‘@apple’, ‘@huawei’, ‘@astonmartin’, ‘@hilton’, ‘@lego’, ‘@twitter’, ‘@airbnb’, ‘@costco’, ‘@ikea’ and ‘@google’.

There are still thousands of usernames up for sale, too. Of the handles that include major brand names, the top-end of current bids are for ‘@oracle’ (with a current top bid of 111,300 Toncoins, worth an equivalent of $192,000) and ‘@nestle’ ($162,000). Other listings include ‘@peugeot’, ‘@linkedin’, ‘@disneyland’, ‘@barclays’, ‘@pepsico’, ‘@nbcnews’, ‘@marcjacobs’, ‘@gmailsupport’, ‘@chicagobulls’, ‘@craigslist’, ‘@minecraft’ and ‘@blueorigin’.

The potential risk that this auction poses is significant, claims one IP protection manager at a major brand (who preferred not to be named). “With the launch of Telegram’s username sales platform, brand owners will have to look at reviewing social media handle monitoring with more focus,” they tell WTR. “The opportunities for counterfeiters and scammers to buy brand names and use them to lure unsuspecting consumers cannot be underestimated, especially as Telegram is already home to hidden link sales and the sharing of copyright content via its Telegram channel and group functions.”

It is worth noting that Telegram has already been flagged as a major risk when it comes to the promotion of counterfeit goods. Telegram was noted as a leading platform for counterfeits in Egypt and India in recent editions of our ongoing series on online counterfeit hotspots across the world. This was before the sale of brand usernames.

With the risk of fraud and counterfeiting on the rise on Telegram – a platform, it is worth reiterating, that is growing by millions of users every month – the need for efficient enforcement is paramount. Unfortunately, the brand protection manager tells us, Telegram “is essentially lawless when it comes to IP rights”. Typical methods (eg, reporting illegal activity) could be ineffective, they suggest. “They have a reporting email, but getting complaints about counterfeiting is currently not possible,” they reveal. “I did have some success for a while, but they’ve stopped answering emails or removing content from groups selling counterfeits.”

Telegram claims that it has to “process legitimate requests to take down illegal public content” (eg, sticker icons that violate IP rights), which it does via email (‘[email protected]’ or ‘[email protected]’). When a complaint is received, Telegram claims to “perform the necessary legal checks and take it down when deemed appropriate”.

With the Telegram username auction ongoing, trademark professionals should check the marketplace for any usernames that may conflict with their or their clients’ brand names. Buying these conflicting handles for thousands of dollars will probably be out of the question. But it will be worth monitoring the activity of the purchased usernames (by entering in the domain address ‘https://t.me/username’) in case they engage in publicly viewable illicit behaviour (eg, promoting counterfeits or brand impersonation). Worryingly, the major risk will stem from activity that may not be viewable on the public profile (eg, accounts using the genuine-looking usernames to contact members of the public to commit fraud or phishing campaigns).

The Telegram auction is another reminder of why major companies must be proactive in registering their brand names on any new social media platforms. With Twitter appearing to be in turmoil, there have been numerous reports of users flocking to alternative social media sites (including Mastodon, Hive Social and Counter Social), which could become mainstream in the months ahead. Now is the time for brand protection practitioners to step up their proactive registering of brand names on fledgling social networks. If they do not, as this month’s Telegram auction has demonstrated, the damage could be costly.

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• Source: https://www.worldtrademarkreview.com/article/brand-names-sale-the-major-risk-posed-telegrams-username-auction