OK so my friend is having a problem. He has a fan site on the new show on MTV called 8th & Ocean. They told him he's using copyrighted material. The only thing he had on is the images that were copyrighted. The name is trademarked as 8th & Ocean. His site was at 8thandoceanforums.com. Could they sue over the name? 8th (st) and Ocean (ave) is an intersection in Miami Florida aswell... I think he's giving up to easy with this subject, what's your thoughts?
He can't use the images, but he could try using media shots of the actors. (Publicity photos that magazines use). He should definetely keep hold of the domain and enjoy his site.
That's what I was saying. What about having ads on the site? All the content is his own (since it's a forum...) Would that work?
I would take off the images just to make them happy. Also I doubt they would ever go after the domain name since its a pain in the a$$ in court for them.
I would find out if they've actually trademarked the term: "8th & Ocean". If it was trademarked prior to the registration of the domain name, legally they have a right to it. It sucks, but that is the case. If they haven't, then as the previous poster said they'd have a tough time with it. Regarding the revenue, that's a tough one since if he's been using copyrighted photos without permission, this is a stance they can probably take and win since he would have made money off of using the work of others. Once the changes are made and should the site be able to be kept up, I'm not sure they have as good of a chance in getting any future revenue. I think your friend may want to consider talking to a lawyer. You can probably find a good one that will give you a free consultation, and will likely also be able to find the answers to the questions I mentioned above. The bottom line is not to be intimidated just because they sent a letter and are asking for everything. I've been down this road with a large corporation, and this is the best advice I can give you. Take your time, and whatever you do don't overreact. Once you've met with a lawyer and feel comfortable with what's been said, tell your lawyer to contact their legal department and request that they direct all future conversations through your lawyer. At that point let your lawyer handle it and just make sure you follow his/her advice. If you do that they'll take you far more seriously. But don't let them bully you with big threats. They can't really do half of what they threaten, and I'd be willing to bet that the worst outcome will probably be that the site would have to be taken down. Ian