USA outlaws so-called cybersquatting ...

[Dickey Hard %=========> - - $$$]

People who
register Internet sites in the names of
famous companies with plans to sell the
names back to the firms for big money
may end up paying big fines instead
under legislation passed by the Senate
late Thursday.

The bill outlaws so-called cybersquatting
by imposing fines of up to $100,000 per Internet name on a person
who registers a name in "bad faith" by hoping to profit from the
association with a trademark owned by someone else.

That would cover people who registered a trademark name hoping
to sell it to the trademark owner, as well as sites that use
trademarks, or words similar to trademarks, to draw traffic to their
own sites.

For example, purveyors of pornography registered dosney.com,
similar to Walt Disney Co.'s own Web site, and a seller of phone
calling cards not affiliated with AT&T Corp. registered
attphonecard.com.

But the legislation was substantially changed from a proposal
originally introduced in June by Michigan Republican Spence
Abraham.

Legal experts had warned that the earlier bill was far too broad and
could have led to criminal prosecutions of people who used
trademark names in files posted on the Internet, e-mail addresses,
or hyperlinks leading from one Web site to another.

The earlier bill also outlawed people who put up protest or parody
sites using trademark names, like www.PepsiBloodbath.com, a
site urging Pepsi to stop posting advertising in Mexican sports
arenas during bull fights.

Under the version passed by the Senate Thursday, written by
Vermont Democrat Pat Leahy and Utah Republican Orrin Hatch,
fines would only be imposed on the use of domain names for the
purpose of profiting from the value of a another's trademark.

"It is important that we distinguish between the legitimate and
illegitimate use of domain names," Leahy said in a statement on
the bill. "Bad-faith intent to profit is required for a violation to
occur."

For the bill to become law, the House would have to adopt similar
legislation.

--

___________________________________________________________

" ... If somebody makes it idiot proof,
Then somebody else will invent a better idiot ... "

T. Elam

*****************

Fascism starts with a sentence:
- Yes, we are primitive, but they are savages...
- Yes, we are drunks, but they are alcoholics...
- Yes, we are killing, but they are slaughtering...

D. Kish
___________________________________________________________