The fight over the highly valuable domain Prosecco.com has escalated into dueling international lawsuits between an Italian regulatory body and a U.S.-based company.

The Dispute

The Consorzio di Tutela della Denominazione di Origine Controllata Prosecco, the Italian organization responsible for overseeing and protecting the “Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC)” designation for Prosecco, has filed a lawsuit in the United Kingdom seeking to obtain control of the domain names Prosecco.com and ProseccoDOC.com.

However, Best Drinks, LLC, a U.S. company that claims to be the rightful owner of both domains, has fired back by filing a lawsuit in Virginia (PDF) seeking declaratory relief — asking the court to affirm its ownership and prevent any transfer of the domains.

Geographic Indications at the Core

According to Best Drinks’ filing, the Italian consortium has previously attempted to register “Prosecco” as a certification mark in the United States, but the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) rejected the application. The USPTO determined that Prosecco “does not function as a certification mark indicating regional origin,” undermining the consortium’s claim to exclusive rights in the U.S.

Best Drinks further alleges that the Italian group chose to file its case in the U.K. as an act of forum shopping, since U.K. courts generally take a more favorable view of geographic indication protections. The Italian lawsuit also names a former owner of the domains who resides in the U.K., though Best Drinks maintains that this person no longer controls the properties.

Legal Timelines and Next Steps

A response in the U.K. lawsuit is due October 22, while in the U.S., Best Drinks is asking the court for a temporary restraining order (TRO) to block any transfer of the domains to the Italian organization while litigation continues.

Attorney Jeffrey Neuman is representing Best Drinks in the U.S. proceedings.

As both sides dig in, the battle over Prosecco.com — a name tied to one of Italy’s most famous exports — could become a landmark case testing the boundaries between geographic indications and domain name rights across jurisdictions.