Utube.com v. YouTube.com
Ohio pipe firm says confused web surfers are hurting its business
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Utube.com v. YouTube.com
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Utube.com v. YouTube.com -
Utube.com v. YouTube.com -
Utube.com v. YouTube.com -
Utube.com v. YouTube.com -
Utube.com v. YouTube.com -
Utube.com v. YouTube.com -
Utube.com v. YouTube.com -
Utube.com v. YouTube.com -
Utube.com v. YouTube.com -
Utube.com v. YouTube.com
NOVEMBER 2--An Ohio pipe company whose website, utube.com, has been crippled by misdirected traffic seeking youtube.com, has sued the online video giant, claiming that the confusion has injured its business. In a lawsuit filed Monday in U.S. District Court, Universal Tube & Rollform Equipment charges that the web address confusion has led to more than 70,000 visitors daily arriving at the pipe firm's web site looking for videos. Along with increased bandwidth costs (now at $2500 monthly, up from just $100), the company complains that the traffic crush has led to its servers crashing on multiple occasions and the arrival of web site visitors who 'are not the kinds of visitors that Plaintiff wants at its website.' These unwanted visitors, the lawsuit notes, 'often fill Plaintiff's sales request form...in a vulgar and belligerent manner.' Three amusing examples of such correspondence to utube.com were included as an exhibit to the company's complaint, an excerpt of which you'll find below. The lawsuit also lists some of the larger site's sketchier offerings, including clips on torture, tampon, and pubic hair fetishes. Universal Tube, which has used the utube.com address since 1996, wants the video site (which was purchased last month by Google) to cease using its web address, among other things. Though we'd guess that Universal Tube, which says that it is 'committed to being the number one supplier of used tube and pipe mills and rollform machinery in the world,' would settle for a bit less. Say, like giving up its url for seven figures. (10 pages)
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