It's all about intent and what you are doing with the name.... If you registered the name long before myspace existed I don't see you having a problem... Now don't think you can use it to promote the myspace trademark, because that would definetly not work for you, but if the name was yours originally, then I do not see them giving you a problem. I'm sure that if they tryed hard enough, they have resonably grounds to claim that it belongs to them, or should belong to them, but in my personal opinion, it would be foolish for them to do so, unless you were using it in a confusingly similar way as them and it could contribute to consumer confusion.
I have a plan to use it as a graphic and features related resource for myspace and xanga... Do you think I would have gotten away with that? It`s a great domain name, and I think it`s worth alot of money if I can keep it..
Depends on how badly MySpace wanted to stop you. They legally could probably stop you from using the domain in bad faith (promoting MySpace related stuff)... but they would actually need to take you to court rather than the "quick and easy" ICANN dispute resolution where they could simply take it based on the registration date vs. trademark date.
As Shawn said, you can't legally do it. You can't use the name that is anyway associated with an existing trademark unless your usage had been established prior to theirs - and even then, they could possibly limit any expansion. Even if you were 40 years old and had been born with the last name of "Microsoft" you couldn't use it in a manner that conflicts with their usage or trademark classifications. As a trademark attorney once told me, you would then have a situation where people would search out people who had been born with a name that is now a trademark and make them a partial owner and claim usuage rights. You could certainly use the name is a way that doesn't compete with an existing trademark - and there are more than one type with MySpace. Had you developed the domain and been using it in a manner that pre-dated other usage, you might have an infringement claim (depending on the timing). In order to have a trademark, you have to have been actually using it in the manner you are claiming rights to. You can't have a name and then decide to develop it by piggybacking on someone elses idea/usage.
You can legally challenge that if your site name is more than just myspace and you do not do any business with myspace. ie. if your domain name is myspacekitchen.com and your sell kitchenware, myspace can't touch you. But if you own myspacespamming.com or myspacefriends.com or myspacetools.com and you market to myspace.com's users, then you're in trouble. Relinquishing the domain is also an arguable issue. There is no law that says your have to surrender the domain name to anyone. You just have to "cease & desist", that's the law, not "cease, desist and surrender" unless it's court ordered, i.e, the judge told you to do it. Ask your internet lawyer.
They can sue you for damages and any income you made, plus treble legal fees. That alone can force many to surrender a name that's usage made it infringement. Under the Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy adopted by ICANN, trademark owners can take away names that someone is using "in bad faith." A sign of bad faith is registering a name "primarily for the purpose of selling" it to a trademark holder. The owner of the domain name "Madonna.com" was forced to surrender the domain to the singer.
this whole thing is ridiculous. i am sick of huge companies/websites being such snobs about their trademark. myspace sites are promoting the use of myspace which should be a plus for myspace. they just need to lay off and stop being so damn greedy
Trademark law REQUIRES that they take action to stop people from infringing or they risk losing their trademark. Some companies don't like people making money off their coattails, but the many are worried about losing their trademark - i.e. genericide.
This sucks. I have a domain with myspace in it. I will prolly jsut take it offline and lie low for a while although I do not see a reason to give them my domain.
Curiously this thread is from January and some of the sites mentioned - myspacesupport being one - are still operating. As someone who runs a MySpace site that doesn't have MySpace in the domain name I'd love to seem them shut down
Speaking of trademark and domain name debates, this one continues and is certainly interesting: http://www.nissan.com/ Watch the video interview from CNBC. He fought and apparently won, but the amount of money spent to defend himself appears to have offset the victory. Ian
People are not understanding anything here , it is only if you have a myspace type site ( like an online community site ) , and you have myspace in the domain , that they will take it.
So it is not help sites? Only if i set up a community similar to myspace and had myspace in the domain.
There are several trademarks on "MySpace" by different companies. Each holds rights to a certain classification. You cannot use "MySpace + anything else" in your domain name if it is in the same classification. If your sites content is going to mention "MySpace" the portal, or have any tools, add-ons that are "MySpace" related - you cannot use "MySpace + anything else" in the domain name. If your site is about your room in a tree house, and doesn't have anything to do with "MySpace" the portal, or any other trademarked classifications, then you could use "MySpaceTreeHouse" in a domain name.
My friend was planning on phishing Myspace accounts with RNyspace.com rnyspace.com Get it? Well long story short, he got a legal threat so he deleted the domain.
phishing anything with any site is illegal. If you have MySpace in your domain, dont worry about it. I have two of them and no problems yet. MySpace just doesnt like people scamming them with spam (bulletin spam, comment spam, etc). If your site is just to help people, you shouldnt get any problems.
Then My Space Inc will purchase Yourspace.com, incorporate a shell co. as YourSpace LLC and send them C&D letters too.
Wrong. It's a myth that if your site is "helping people" or "pro MySpace" it's ok. If MySpace allows people to use their trademark they run the risk of losing it by it becoming genericized. "No problem yet" means more than likely they haven't yet heard about your site - but chances are you will.
"MySpace" Federal Trademarks date back to July 23, 1997. There are actually several owners of trademarks on "MySpace" - each for a different classification. You could have a prior usage claim if your site was using the domain for a particular classification before they were. If your "MySpace" domain was parked or about something completely different, then your rights are limited. You can't use the domain for "MySpace" the portal related content. "Apple" has been used by many different companies - including the Beatles, but "Apple" computers was a unique usage and gave them trademark rights for its particular usage. In theory, there could be over 40 different owners of a particular servicemark or trademark - each owner having rights to use it for a particular usage (classification) and any owner could not infringe upon the others usage. A trademark becomes "uncontestable" after about 6 years (assuming no one contests it). After a mark becomes "uncontestable", even if you were using the name before anyone else, you cannot stop the newer company from using your mark, and in fact, your rights to grow would be limited - although you couldn't be forced to stop using it (provided you didn't try to use it to directly promote their services). For instance, rights to "Madonna.com" weren't owned by the singer just because she used the name. The former owner went and used the domain name by putting content related to the singer on it. The singer was thus able to take the domain. A lot depends on how the name is used.
Its their right to do so, and I really understand them. I would not want other people/companies using my trademark to profit. //Andreas