Website row pits B.C. teen against Microsoft

[OneBlueSky]

the Evil Empire is at it again . . . they want to take down this kid's website because he uses his own name -- Mike Rowe -- in the title . . . MikeRoweSoft.com . . .

http://www.canada.com/vancouver/news/story.asp?id=37261520-1B58-4E4F-B534-7077040C8071

The giant software company is not too pleased with Mike Rowe's Internet domain site

Norman Gidney
Victoria Times Colonist
Saturday, January 17, 2004

VICTORIA - A Vancouver Island high school student who does Web site design part-time is locked in a legal battle with one of the biggest companies in the world.

Microsoft Corp. of Seattle, currently valued at $300 billion US, wants Mike Rowe to give up www.mikerowesoft.com as his Internet domain name. The company claims copyright infringement of its name.

- more . . .

http://www.canada.com/vancouver/news/story.asp?id=37261520-1B58-4E4F-B534-7077040C8071

[acmavm]

1. Microsoft has been getting a lot of bad publicity lately. But throwing a

tantrum because of the name of some kid's website makes Gates & Co. sound like the assholes in the White House.

Get over it Bill, you are not God. In fact, your software is such a pain in the ass I wish I had the money for a Mac.

[Valjean]

2. ACLU

I think Mike Rowe should enlist the help of the ACLU.

The trademark is clearly for "Microsoft" not "MikeRoweSoft".

[private_ryan]

3. ACLU will not mess with microsoft

they're notorious for making cases linger for years and years in courts. Eventually the other side gives up.

[HEyHEY]

5. This is in Canada

And in Canada they don't let big corps fuck people around like this.... their casew won't hold, especially in BC. Lots of Liberal Judges.

[Military Brat]

4. I think he should change the name to hatebgates.com

Let Bill Gates chew on that one.

Of all the asinine wastes of time in the legal arena, this one ranks right down at the bottom with the ridiculous lawsuit by Faux/O'Reilly against the Great Al Franken.

Bill, this may be news to you, but you're a mortal. Get over it.

[HEyHEY]

6. There was a similiar case to this in BC recently

Almost the exact same, a guy's real name was used in his company so it sounded like a major one. The large corp took him to court and lost. Copyright laws are enforced to the T here. So if it isn't a direct infringment Micro soft will lose.

[baldguy]

7. Mike Rowe should sue Bill Gates.

Who's infringing on who's rights here? Mr. Rowe is a "natural-born person" in legalese, rather than a legal construct, as every corporation is. Alternatively, he could charter a corp called Bilgaitz Corp. and again, sue for copywriter violations.

[DrBB]

8. Sigh. It's a "due diligence" issue.

I have no love for Microsoft, believe me, but as I understand it the law requires you to defend your trademarks or risk losing them. It doesn't necessarily require you to go around looking for infringers to sue, but if one is brought to your attention you have to show "due diligence" by going after them or you can risk having your trademark become a generic term. The classic example is Kleenex, but obviously there are many others.

A few years ago there was another one of these flaps when Time/Warner, which apparently owns Superman, had to sue a high school newspaper. The high school was Daley High, in Chicago, and the paper was called the "Daley Planet."

Stupid, and bad PR, but that's the law, as I understand it.