Slipknot Dismisses Lawsuit Over Slipknot.com Domain

The heavy metal band Slipknot has voluntarily dismissed a federal lawsuit it filed last fall against the owner of the domain name Slipknot.com, accusing the site of cybersquatting and trademark infringement for more than two decades. The dismissal, filed in a California federal court on January 22, 2026, was made without prejudice, allowing the band to potentially revive the case in the future.

The legal action, initiated in October 2025, targeted Slipknot Online Services Ltd., an anonymous entity that registered the domain in February 2001. The band's representatives alleged that the website had exploited Slipknot's name and reputation by featuring pay-per-click advertisements for concert tickets, merchandise, and VIP packages, as well as links to unofficial products like costume masks. These elements, according to the complaint, misled fans into believing the site was affiliated with the band, which formed in the mid-1990s and released its debut album in 1999, resulting in financial harm.

"A fan of plaintiff or someone who otherwise wanted to purchase authorized Slipknot merchandise would undoubtedly visit the slipknot.com website assuming it belonged to plaintiff and then...