[Infowarrior] - Another trademark-censorship lawsuit

[Richard Forno]

May 24, 2007

http://www.citizen.org/pressroom/release.cfm?ID=2444

Infomercial Investment Software Company Cannot Silence Criticism of Its
Products on the Internet Under First Amendment, Public Citizen Says

Company Cannot Use Trademark Law to Squelch Web Reviews of Infomercial
Products 

WASHINGTON, D.C. ­ A company that markets controversial investment software
products through television infomercials cannot suppress criticism of those
products on the Internet, the consumer group Public Citizen told a Florida
court.

Public Citizen, along with local counsel Robert W. Murphy in Florida, filed
a brief late Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of
Florida, Orlando Division. They are defending Arizona resident Justin
Leonard against a lawsuit filed by affiliated companies Dynetech Corporation
and GlobalTec Solutions, LLP. The Dallas-based GlobalTec and its
Orlando-based parent company Dynetech claim that Leonard infringed their
trademarks by featuring online reviews of their products on his
consumer-oriented Web sites. Public Citizen has asked the court to dismiss
the complaint because Leonard¹s mention of the companies¹ products on his
Web sites is protected by the First Amendment, because Leonard has not
violated trademark or other laws and because the court has no jurisdiction
over Leonard in Florida.

Leonard is the creator and operator of the sites InfomercialRatings.com and
InfomercialScams.com, where users can read and post reviews of infomercial
products. His sites are widely read and have been featured in papers such as
The New York Times and on influential consumer-information Web sites.

Dynetech and GlobalTec sell financial products and services through
television infomercials. The companies sued Leonard on Jan. 24 seeking
damages and attorneys¹ fees, as well as a court order prohibiting Leonard
from using the names of GlobalTec¹s Wizetrade and 4X Made Easy software on
his Web sites.

GlobalTec¹s software is marketed for purposes of day trading on the stock
market and on foreign currency exchanges. It purports to indicate, with the
use of red or green lights, whether an investment is likely to increase or
decrease in value over the next several minutes, days or over longer periods
of time. GlobalTec¹s trademarked product names are used on Leonard¹s Web
sites only to identify the subject matter of relevant consumer reviews, many
of which are highly critical of the companies¹ products.

³Through this lawsuit, GlobalTec is attempting to use trademark and unfair
competition laws to silence unwanted criticism about its controversial
products,² said Deepak Gupta, an attorney with Public Citizen. ³Using this
logic, any company dissatisfied with a bad review of its products or
services ­ whether in a Web site, printed newspaper or magazine ­ could
bring an infringement action to keep it from being published.²

³Because removing GlobalTec¹s trademarks from the Web sites would make it
impossible for consumers to find the product reviews posted there, doing so
would subvert Florida¹s law, which is intended to protect consumers,² said
Murphy. ³Instead, the law would be turned into a tool for companies to
conceal consumer complaints.²