Domain name registrar Register.com has filed suit against rival Domain Registry of America, charging it with using Register.com's brand and logo to steal customers.

The suit, which was filed in federal district court in late August, charges that the Canadian-based company is using deceptive and misleading tactics in a bid to sign up new customers from Register.com's base.

The compaint is among a string of suits and complaints involving WhoIs domain databases. In this case, the company charges that Domain Registry of America illegally "spidered" (define) its WHOIS database in order to pull names for solicitation.

The New York-based Register.com charges that its rival then used the database to "inundate its customers with misleading direct mail solicitations advising them to 'renew' their domain name registrations by sending payment to (Domain Registry)."

The e-mails "do not mention that it was Register.com, and not any of the defendants, that originally registered the customers' domain names. Nor do they explain that customers who accept defendants' solicitation will actually be transferring their domain name registrations to a direct competitor of Register.com," the compaint said.

The e-mail solicitations contain a link that provides directions on how to transfer registration from Register.com to Domain Registry of America. The lawsuit also contends that personnel of Domain Registry of America have falsely informed Register.com customers that the company has merged with Register.com and/or is "handling the billing" for Register.com.

The suit seeks unspecified punitive and monetary damages for infringement of trademark and unfair competition, among other complaints. A Register.com spokesperson said the tactics of the company are confusing to Register.com customers.

A spokesman for Domain Registry of America was not available to comment in response to the suit.

The case is among a string of disputes involving companies that plumb others' WHOIS databases, including Internic, which is affiliated with Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) and operated by registrar VeriSign. Verisign recently received a warning from ICANN about fixing invalid e-mail names and addresses in its domain database. The tactic is often used by illegal Web site operators to avoid prosecution.