Case: Hosting Provider Liable in Case of Clear Trademark Infringement and Required to Disclose Customer Information
We secured a favorable outcome for TER Group (a global distributor of chemical products) in summary proceedings before the District Court of The Hague (January 23, 2026).
TER is the owner of the international word mark TER (with EU validity) for, among other things, chemicals.
The Challenge
TER discovered that signs such as “TER Chemie” and a corresponding logo were being used without permission on www.terchemie.com. The actual website owner remained unknown as they did not respond to the cease-and-desist letters sent by email and mail. TER was “unable to determine who the owner is” of the domain name. However, it was clear that Neostrada (Your Hosting B.V.) was the hosting provider.
Notice-and-takedown did not work (systematically)
After receiving cease-and-desist letters and notice-and-takedown requests, the hosting provider definitively refused to intervene, stating, among other things: “As a hosting provider, we are unable to sufficiently assess whether an infringement has actually occurred … and will therefore take no further action … We will only do so based on a court ruling.” Furthermore, a temporary suspension proved not to be permanent.
The ruling: a clear line under the DSA + Lycos/Pessers
The preliminary relief judge ruled that trademark infringement had occurred: the dominant element “TER” had been copied in its entirety, and there was a likelihood of confusion within the same sector.
Crucial: due to the notification, Neostrada was deemed to be aware of the unlawful nature, meaning “the … exception to liability does not apply” (Art. 6(1) DSA).
The claim for disclosure of name and address details was also granted based on the Lycos/Pessers criteria. The court emphasized that TER must be able to take action against the trademark infringement and therefore requires the identity information.
Result
Neostrada must remove/block web pages and provide name and address details within 24 hours, subject to a penalty of €10,000 per (part of a) day (max. €250,000). In addition, the court ordered Neostrada to pay €10,171.47 in legal costs. 10
Team
The Fruytier attorneys responsible for this successful case are our Intellectual Property lawyers Bert Gravendeel and Britt Beumer.
