Tuesday, May 28, 2002

Question for Discussion: Keyword Purchase as a Species of Ambush Marketing
Read this article from Brandchannel's site on the accepted practice of ambush marketing.  Is purchasing a competitor's name as a search term on a pay-for-performance search engine (such as overture.com) different (legally, as opposed to ethically)? 10:44:34 PM

FTC vs. Zuccarini, Cupcake, et. al.
The FTC has fined John Zuccarini, also known as The Country Walk, JZDesign, RaveClub Berlin, and more than 22 names incorporating the word "Cupcake," including Cupcake Party, Cupcake-Party, Cupcake Parties, Cupcake Patrol, Cupcake Incident, and Cupcake Messenger over $1.8 million for various transgressions involving over 5,500 domain names.  I have actions pending against him, maybe you do too. The press release (with links to the order "suspending" most of the 5,500 names) is at: http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2002/05/cupcake.htm.  p.s. A unified gTLD whois which allowed searches by registrant name, address, email, and phone number  would make enforcement against this type of guy easier.   12:04:22 PM

© Copyright 2004 Martin Schwimmer.