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World 2 · Name Detective · Lesson 05

Domain name vs business name vs trademark

Three registrations that look alike but give very different things — and a trademark is the clearest route to an exclusive right in a brand.

  • 4 min
  • Jurisdictions: International / treaty, Australia, Vietnam
  • Last reviewed: 18 October 2026

Draft — awaiting editorial review

Educational content, not legal advice. Lessons are drafts awaiting editorial review.

You will learn to

  • Tell a domain name, a business name and a trademark apart.
  • Explain why a business-name registration does not create trademark rights.
  • Know, in outline, how domain disputes are handled.

Three registrations, three jobs

A domain name is a technical address on the internet, usually allocated first come, first served. A business name is the name you trade under, registered with the business registry (ASIC in Australia; the national enterprise registration system in Vietnam). A trademark is an IP right giving exclusive use of a sign for particular goods or services in a territory.

Registering a name is not owning a brand

ASIC says that only a trademark can give you exclusive rights to a business name. A free domain or an accepted business name does not mean nobody holds a similar trademark. The owner of a registered trademark can still object to your use of the name for the same kind of goods or services. In Vietnam a trade name used lawfully can itself be protected as IP, but only within its business area and territory.

When a domain is disputed

For generic top-level domains (such as .com), a trademark owner can use the Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy (UDRP), with WIPO as one of the providers. Country domains such as .au and .vn have their own rules. These processes usually require showing that the domain is identical or confusingly similar to your mark, that the holder has no rights or legitimate interests in it, and that it was registered and is being used in bad faith (the .au rules need only one of the two).

Try a scenario

Tuan has just registered the business name "May Xanh Studio" and bought mayxanhstudio.vn. He is about to print cards and signage.

What is the most sensible next step?

Check your understanding

ModeSee the explanation after each question.

Pass mark: 80% — for this lesson that means every question.

Question 1 of 4What does registering a business name with ASIC give you?

Take away

Treat domains and business names as admin. Treat the trademark as the asset — and check it first.

Apply it to your IP

Nothing runs or is saved on its own. Each option only opens a tool when you choose it.

What this lesson cannot tell you

Registration and dispute rules differ by domain and by country. A search result is not an opinion on infringement.

Official references