what is the go with celeb sites these days?
 

im not talking content either.. i see sites like www.britneyspearsnude.com that are either redirects to pop up hell, or celeb site FPA's.. is that at all legal?
i mean.. no content.. but using the person's name for financial gain through type ins or redirects?

just curious.. i've always thought celebs were something you don't touch with a ten foot pole.. unless you want said pole in your ass... or you've got the $ to spend defending yourself.

anything definitive on the legalities?

If that is what they are doing, I mean not showing content, than the celebs don't realy have anything to complain agains.

It's still a gray area at the moment though.

Shouldn't be long befor another ruling comes along and tells us what we can and can't do.

I wouldn't touch it with a twenty foot pole.

i know.. but... i guess the thing is without their name in the url you wouldn't even be making the type in cash.. even if the FPA you've got doesn't even mention them.. what could they sue you for though if that were the case? using their name for financial advantage?.. do they get the $50 you made all year on type-ins plus lawyer fees or pay out the ass for "damages"..

You'll probably have some idiot sign up for one of the pay-sites that domain redirects to thinking he is gunna sees Britney Spears naked. When he founds out the sad truth, maybe he'll call his lawyer and sue. Don't we love America? :Graucho

-eru

lol i'd love to see that.. "your honour, the internet pornographer that made the circle jerk i was in lied to me as a consumer.. i typed in "britney spears nude" because i took it on good faith i was going to see that virgin slit.."

I don't think you should use "Britney Spears" and "virgin slit" in the same sentence.

-eru

my bad :) hence forth known as the "the timberlake retreat"

You can get sued, in theory, but most celebs just use ICANN or the courts to take the domain away.

There have been tons of cases and the celebs almost always win unless you have a damn good excuse, like you have the same name as them.

The Whitehouse.com people spent big $$$ to try to keep Madonna.com, but they lost that one, even though her name is taken from religion.

Eventually some organization like APIC will come along to help celebs protect their trademarks on the web. They'll start sending out letters in bulk, suing everyone like crazy, and people will have to give up on that.

Some of the big companies, with in house lawyers, already do this. You register a domain with their trademark in it, and 15 days later, you get a threatening ass letter. There are some companies who are totally on top of abuse, but most are still having trouble keeping up with the mayhem of the web.

With celebs, they also have to be careful not to piss of their fans.