Microsoft today announced a domain infringement settlement of £24,000 with UK company Dyslexic Domain Company Limited.

Cybersquatters register internet domain names containing not only widely recognised trademarked names and brands but also misspelled variations of them(such as winowslivemessenger.com and www.micr0soft.co.uk), which trick unsuspecting computer users and illegally profit from them through online advertising networks.

Screens filled with pay-per-click advertisements greet visitors to these web sites, which can generate revenue for the registered domain owner and the online ad network.

Microsoft has reclaimed more than 1,100 infringing domain names worldwide in the past six months with the help of Microsoft researchers.

‘These sites confuse visitors who are trying to reach genuine company web sites, which can negatively affect corporate brands and reputations as well as impair the end-users’ experience online,’ said Aaron Kornblum, senior attorney with Microsoft.

‘With every ad hyperlink clicked, a registrant or ad network harvests cash at the trademark owner’s expense, while derailing legitimate efforts by computer users who are trying to go to a specific web site,’ he said.