Using Real names as domain names...Legal?

[DEVELISH]

Hi,

here in Germany we have the ruling that using other people names is not legal. Like if I would own a domain like chadbellville.com I would have to give it to a person if that person an proove he's is called like that.

So now if I would register a domain name via registerfly.com or cheapnames.com or thelike and the domain would be <firstname><Lastname>.CNO would I run into legal issues or would it be ok since "first come first served"?

DEVELISH

[longboardjim]

seek legal council for your area.

not sure i would ever use my real-name as a domain name ( most people can barely pronounce it let alone spell it ) a cousin of mine uses our last name as a legal service so i would never want to embarass him and/or put him in a bad light.

jim

[DEVELISH]

I would maybe use someone elses stage name as a domain name - but thats just something I think about.

Would the producer who thought of the name have a copyright on it?

[Doctor Dre]

I don't think you'll find a lot of people aware of germany's laws arround here.

[longboardjim]

I would maybe use someone elses stage name as a domain name - but thats just something I think about.

Would the producer who thought of the name have a copyright on it?

and this is one of the main reasons i "secured" longboardjim.com , i would hate for someone to go around masquerading as me and/or defaming my work. (i can do that just fine on my own!)
i wanted to make it a content gallery but i already have 3 of those , so i'm looking at developing it into a "personal site"
in regards to names ( pending the rules and regulations of your area ) you can pretty much secure just about anything on the net , i've nabbed a couple of company names but they always seem to fall back on "initials" and/or .net which leaves me with domains not worth anything.( so much for the forced..err..finder'$ fee! ):goof:

[chadknowslaw]

Develish, if you use my name for a domain name I could probably recover the domain using ICANN cybersquatting rules.

[DEVELISH]

Hey Chad,

I understand the REAL names deal but what if I would register a stage name domain like uhm jonnylong.com or JoshStuffer.com - but a stage name of an existing model and lets say that no registered trademark for that name exists..

:develish:

[chadknowslaw]

In the US trademark rights and copyrights do exist even before they have been registered, so just because a name is not registered does not mean it is free to use. There is more to a trademark/tradename search than just the filings at the US Patent and Trademark Office!!

A good general rule is that if you think you are using a name that someone else came up with, check with a trademark lawyer before you go buying domains or registering trademarks.