On September 10, 1999, eToys, Inc. decided that they
wanted to associate another buzz term with its brand. They obviously felt
that being termed a 'reverse domain name hijacker' would boost their Christmas
season sales. On this day, eToys brought a lawsuit against etoy (no 's')
for its ownership and use of the etoy.com domain name. They charge that
"the antisocial, obscene, and offensive images associated with defendants'
use of the mark 'etoy,' both on the Internet and elsewhere, have tarnished
the ETOYS® mark and the eToys brand name..." While this is extremely
humorous, this is only the beginning...
etoy is a group of "agents" in the field of art, graphic design, dance,
poetry, and literature. Their sites, including etoy.com, contain artistic
content and information about artistic actions and bold statements orchestrated
by etoy agents. It has always been controversial and has only loving fans
and sworn enemies. An interview
of one etoy agent shows their attitudes and humous natures.
Last Monday (11/29/99), a California state court placed a preliminary
injunction on etoy. The court ordered that etoy.com be shut down enforced
by a penalty of $10,000 per day.
Why did eToys have such a problem with etoy?
What's the entire story?
What other accusations did eToys charge etoy with?
This page is only the beginning of our coverage of this outrageous legal
matter. This site will show what happens when lawyers have nothing to do.
The specifics of this story are extremely humorous. Stay tuned...