PatrickPretty.com

Tag: trademark infringement

  • Site Critical Of Zeek Goes Missing After HubPages Receives Trademark ‘Infringement’ Complaint Attributed To Rex Venture Group LLC — But North Carolina-Based Rex Not Listed As Trademark Owner; Florida Firm That IS Listed As Owner Says It Has ‘No Knowledge’ Of Complaint

    “We are writing you today and requesting your assistance. It has come to our attention that your website Hubpages.com is broadcasting and delivering content that is both copyrighted and, [sic] Trademark Protected. In addition, the content constitutes a tortuous [sic] interference with us and our 1.2 million independent advertising reps around the world.” — From communication dated July 22 and allegedly sent to HubPages. (Bolding added by PP Blog.)

    UPDATED 10:23 A.M. EDT (U.S.A.) Using the pronouns “we,” “our” and “us” — while butchering a legal term and implying he had the authority to act on behalf of Rex Venture Group LLC — a purported Rex Venture “consultant” appears to have caused HubPages.com to disable a Hub written by “K. Chang” that is critical of the Rex-owned Zeek Rewards MLM “program.”

    How long the “K. Chang” Hub will remain offline and whether it even will return are unclear. A Hub is an article on a specific topic. The “K. Chang” Hub questioned whether Zeek was a legal and viable business.

    Zeek, which operates a penny-auction site known as Zeekler, plants the seed affiliates of the Zeek MLM “program” can earn a return in the hundreds of percent per year by sending it sums up to $10,000 and placing a daily ad for the company online. The firm has preemptively denied it is operating a “pyramid scheme.” And it claims it will ban members who describe Zeek as an investment program, despite the implication of a spectacular return and despite the fact Zeek’s business model closely resembles that of AdSurfDaily.

    ASD, like Zeek, advised members not to describe the “program” as an investment program. Moreover, both ASD and Zeek had (or have) a purported “advertising” component. Zeek members place ads as part of the “program”; ASD members clicked on ads. The U.S. Secret Service seized more than $80 million from ASD-related bank accounts in 2008. ASD President Andy Bowdoin later was accused of operating a massive online Ponzi scheme that had ensnared tens of thousands of people globally.

    Bowdoin faces sentencing on a Ponzi-related charge of wire fraud next month and has been banned from multilevel marketing, Internet programs and mass marketing. Zeek has listed some known ASD participants as “employees.”

    In what is emerging as the latest bizarre drama involving Zeek, the “K. Chang” Hub about Zeek went missing earlier this week in the aftermath of a purported complaint for “Copyright, Trademark infringement” dated July 22 and submitted to HubPages.

    The complaint, according to information “K. Chang” said he received from HubPages, was submitted by “Robert Craddock” and implied “Craddock” was acting on behalf of Rex Venture Group LLC, Zeek’s purported parent company.

    Whether “Craddock” actually had the backing of Rex Venture/Zeek when submitting the complaint is unclear. “K. Chang” now says he’s trying to get the answer to that question.

    The PP Blog was unable to reach Zeek for comment.

    “Craddock,” according to the complaint, advised HubPages that the phrases “Zeekler; Zeek Rewards; Shopping Daisy” were protected by copyright and that “K. Chang” somehow was violating those purported copyrights. The complaint also alleged trademark infringement and libel.

    Whether “Craddock” had the backing of Rex Venture/Zeek to make those claims also is unclear. Rex is not listed as the owner of any of the three trademarks allegedly cited by “Craddock” in the complaint to HubPages. “K. Chang,” meanwhile, says he’s willing to correct his Zeek Hub if there are errors of fact.

    New Confusion Emerges

    Screen shot: Source: Justia.com

    Perhaps the biggest of the early issues surrounding the Hub flap is whether North Carolina-based Rex Venture or its Zeek arm even owns the trademarks “Craddock” allegedly brought to the attention of HubPages as part of a bid to bring down the “K. Chang” site.

    Information on Justia.com, which tracks trademark applications, suggests the marks are owned by Ebon Research Systems LLC. A federal database maintained by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, meanwhile,  references Ebon Research as “Owner” and “(APPLICANT).”

    Ebon Research is a company based in Florida. The firm lists Dr. Florence Alexander and Stanley Alexander Sr. as its managing members, which leads to questions not only about whether “Craddock” had the backing of Rex Venture/Zeek to bring the complaint, but also whether he had any standing to complain to HubPages about any Zeek-related matter.

    Reached by the PP Blog for comment yesterday and told about the “K. Chang” circumstance and the copyright/trademark complaint at HubPages, a woman who identified herself as Dr. Florence Alexander of Ebon Research said she had “no knowledge” of any trademark or copyright complaint filed at HubPages against “K. Chang.”

    “I don’t even know what HubPages is,” she said. Alexander added that she “certainly” knew of Zeek, but declined to answer questions about whether Ebon Research had a business relationship with Zeek or Rex Venture. She then ended the call, explaining that a family matter required her immediate attention.

    Compare the trademark numbers listed in this screen shot of a section of the infringement complaint attributed to Rex Venture Group to the numbers in the screen shot above.

    The PP Blog reached Ebon Research by dialing a phone number published for the company on the website of a U.S. government agency that identifies the firm as an “interested vendor” of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. A separate, nongovernment website styled “EbonResearchSystems.com” uses the same phone number for Ebon Research published on the government website and the same street address for Ebon Research published in Florida corporation records.

    The nongovernment website that uses the Ebon Research name to form its URL publishes the logos of several government agencies, including the U.S. Department of Justice, and the agencies are identified on the website as members of a “federal client list.” Ownership of the domain is unclear because it is registered through Domains By Proxy.

    Whether Alexander will have additional comments later that could clarify the Zeek issues is unknown.

    “K. Chang” noted yesterday that “Craddock” had identified himself in an email as a Rex Venture Group “consultant” interested in obtaining “K. Chang’s” phone number to discuss Zeek-related matters.

    “I’m following up about the content you published on HubPages, regarding Zeek Rewards and companies connected with or believed to be connected with,” “Craddock” wrote, according to “K. Chang.” If you would respond with a number so I can discuss this matter with you.”

    “K. Chang” added that “Craddock” used a Gmail address when contacting him, not an address linked to any of the Rex Venture domains.

    That communication was signed “Robert Craddock” on one line, with the name of “Rex Venture Group LLC” appearing on the next line, according to “K. Chang,” who posts on the PP Blog in addition to maintaining the now-missing HubPages site.

    After “K. Chang” received that communication, “K. Chang” received another one from “Craddock” that introduced the specter that a “corporate attorney” for Zeek “will also want to weigh in on this discussion if that is what it takes to keep your posting from being re-published on Hub Pages or anywhere else, as we believe and know this story contains false information and is disruptive to our affiliates.”

    Like the actual complaint to HubPages by “Craddock,” the emailed communication to “K. Chang” also used pronouns such as “we” and “our.”

    The actual complaint to HubPages, according to “K. Chang,” ended with these words (italics added):

    “Rex Venture Group LLC has not given authorization, past or present, for any use, [sic] of its trademarks, [sic] copyrighted phrases. Nor does it allow, or has authorized any publication of material that is defaming and causes a business disruption for is [sic] affiliates around the world. Again I would like to thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.

    Sincerely
    Robert Craddock
    Rex Venture Group LLC

    See “Zeek, The ‘I’ Word And The Weight Of History . . .” (PP Blog/July 25) and Comments thread below the story.

  • President Raises Piracy Issue In State Of The Union Address Just Days After Justice Department Brings Megaupload Copyright-Infringement Case; Overall Fraud Battle Will Expand, Obama Tells Nation

    President Obama raised the issue of international piracy in last night's State of The Union address to the U.S. Congress.

    Speaking to the nation in his State of the Union address to Congress, President Obama last night referenced U.S. efforts to combat piracy. Although the remarks were in the context of battling knock-off goods that infringe trademarks and affect American manufacturing jobs, Obama delivered the message just days after the Justice Department brought racketeering and copyright-conspiracy charges in the Megaupload international piracy case — and the hacker’s group “Anonymous” retaliated by bringing DDoS attacks against government and other sites.

    Megaupload principal Kim Dotcom yesterday was denied bail in New Zealand, the country in which he was arrested on U.S. charges that Megauplaod had amassed at least $175 million through international web piracy.

    Obama referred to neither the Megaupload case nor the follow-up DDoS attacks. But the President did signal that the United States would not stand by idly and submit to the whims of pirates who seek to hide behind international borders and gorge themselves on profits derived from U.S. ingenuity.

    “It’s not right when another country lets our movies, music, and software be pirated,” the President said.

    Megaupload and related entities operated websites that caused at least $500 million in economic harm to U.S. companies by unlawfully reproducing and distributing “infringing copies of copyrighted works, including movies – often before their theatrical release – music, television programs, electronic books, and business and entertainment software on a massive scale,” the Justice Department said last week.

    “The conspirators’ content hosting site, Megaupload.com, is advertised as having more than one billion visits to the site, more than 150 million registered users, 50 million daily visitors and accounting for four percent of the total traffic on the Internet,” the Justice Department said.

    Law enforcement last week executed 20 search warrants in eight countries, including the United States. At least $50 million in assets and 18 domain names were seized, and servers in Canada, the Netherlands and the United States were targeted by investigators to freeze the fraud in its tracks, the Justice Department said.

    Obama also signaled that his administration’s overall fraud crackdown will continue and the the United States would dial up efforts to bring financial criminals to justice. Congress, he said, should stiffen fraud penalties.

    “We’ll also establish a Financial Crimes Unit of highly trained investigators to crack down on large-scale fraud and protect people’s investments,” Obama said.  “Some financial firms violate major anti-fraud laws because there’s no real penalty for being a repeat offender.  That’s bad for consumers, and it’s bad for the vast majority of bankers and financial service professionals who do the right thing.  So pass legislation that makes the penalties for fraud count.

    “And tonight, I’m asking my Attorney General to create a special unit of federal prosecutors and leading state attorney[s] general to expand our investigations into the abusive lending and packaging of risky mortgages that led to the housing crisis,” the President continued. “This new unit will hold accountable those who broke the law, speed assistance to homeowners, and help turn the page on an era of recklessness that hurt so many Americans.”

    The word “fraud” appeared four times in a White House transcript of Obama’s speech. It did not appear at all in the Republican response, which was delivered by Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels and questioned where the United States would get the money to pay for programs in an era of runaway budget deficits.

    The government does too much meddling in business and engages in unrestrained spending, Daniels suggested.

    “In three short years, an unprecedented explosion of spending, with borrowed money, has added trillions to an already unaffordable national debt. And yet the president has put us on a course to make it radically worse in the years ahead,” Daniels said, according to a CNN transcript.

    “In word and deed, the president and his allies tell us that we just cannot handle ourselves in this complex, perilous world without their benevolent protection,” Daniels said. “Left to ourselves, we might pick the wrong health insurance, the wrong mortgage, the wrong school for our kids; why, unless they stop us, we might pick the wrong light bulb.

    “A second view, which I’ll admit some Republicans also seem to hold, is that we Americans are no longer up to the job of self-government. We can’t do the simple math that proves the unaffordability of today’s safety net programs, or all the government we now have. We will fall for the con job that says we can just plow ahead and someone else will pick up the tab. We will allow ourselves to be pitted one against the other, blaming our neighbor for troubles worldwide trends or our own government has caused.”

    A highlight of last night’s State of the Union address was an emotional appearance by Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in the House Chamber. Giffords was shot in an assassination attempt a year ago. Still in the process of recovering from her wounds at the hands of a deranged man with a gun, she is leaving the Congress.

    U.S. District Judge John Roll was killed in the same attack, as were a nine-year-old girl, three senior citizens in their seventies and a 30-year-old Congressional aide engaged to be married.

    Both sides agree that Giffords, who is married to an astronaut, is an American hero whose courage has set an example for all. Both sides also agree that politics in the United States has become polarizing

    What neither side appears to agree on is how best to address polarization, kickstart the economy, regulate the U.S. markets and equip agencies to meet modern challenges, including the unique challenges of the Internet age.

  • Want To Plant The Seed That Famous Brands Back Your MLM Product If They Do Not? Get Ready To Pony Up For Legal Bills: Evolv Banned From Using Trademarks Of M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, University Of Texas

    UPDATED 1:18 P.M. ET (U.S.A.) An MLM company that allegedly planted the seed that its bottled-water product had passed muster with a prestigious university and medical-research facility has agreed to stop making the claims and pay its own costs of litigation after agreeing to a settlement.

    The Board of Regents of the University of Texas System and the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center alleged last year that EvolvHealth LLC and HealtH2O Products LLC had infringed their trademarks and made confusing claims about limited research performed on behalf of the firms.

    M.D. Anderson is one of the most recognizable names in the world in the field of cancer research. The MLM firms used the center’s name to hoodwink the marketplace into believing it had conducted “extensive testing” of Evolv, a product whose base was Houston tap water infused with a formula known as Archaea Active, according to the lawsuit.

    Cancer patients were being misled and potentially harmed by the claims, and the value of the university and center’s trade names and their standing in the scientific community were being harmed through bids by the defendants to plant the seed that the prestigious facilities endorsed the product after examining it thoroughly.

    Nearly 800,000 cancer patients have sought treatment at M.D. Anderson since 1944, and neither the facility nor the university ever endorsed Evolv, despite published suggestions that they had, according to the lawsuit.

    M.D. Anderson claimed in the lawsuit that it had conducted only “preliminary” and “limited” testing under contract with HealtH2O to look at the anti-inflammatory properties of the Archaea Active formula and had conducted no conclusive, comprehensive research.

    Regardless, the product was positioned in the MLM sphere as having undergone “rigorous” testing. M.D. Anderson’s trademark even was placed on the “label of the Evolv product” and on websites operated by the defendants, according to the lawsuit.

    The defendants’ claims planted the seed that “M.D. Anderson performed more extensive testing than actually occurred, and that M.D. Anderson has made scientific findings regarding the Evolv product’s efficacy, safety or beneficial value in treating or preventing cancer,” the lawsuit alleged.

    Even the preliminary testing trumpeted as rigorous and extensive by MLM pitchmen was not scientifically confirmed, according to the lawsuit.

    After the university complained to the defendants, it then was asked to enter into an agreement that would give Evolv and HealtH2O a “worldwide, royalty-free license” to use M.D. Anderson’s name in a marketing material for a product largely consisting of common tap water, according to the lawsuit.

    Neither the university nor the center agreed to the licensing proposal that occurred after the fact, but the defendants kept using the prestigious names in their pitches, according to the lawsuit.

    Eventually HealtH2O tried to turn the tables by asserting counterclaims against the university and M.D. Anderson, but that effort collapsed with the settlement.

    To settle the case, the defendants now have agreed to a permanent injunction that bars them from using the famous trademarks and “any iteration or variation thereof.”

    Under the terms of the settlement, the defendants acknowledged no wrongdoing, but agreed neither to state nor imply that the university or M.D. Anderson endorsed the product.

    Had the case gone to trial and the university and M.D. Anderson prevailed, the defendants could have faced treble damages.

    Read a discussion thread on RealScam.com.

  • BULLETIN: FTC Charges Central Coast Nutraceuticals In Acai-Berry Fraud Case That Alleges Overbilling And ‘Fake Endorsements’ From Oprah, Rachel Ray

    This website was part of a $30 million acai-berry scam that offered purported "free trials," overbilled customers repeatedly and fraudulently traded on the names of Oprah Winfrey, Rachel Ray and other celebrities and well-known brands, the FTC alleged.

    UPDATED 4:56 P.M. EDT (U.S.A.) Calling the operations of Arizona-based Central Coast Nutraceuticals Inc. (CCN) and affiliated companies a “$30 million” scam in 2009 alone, the Federal Trade Commission has obtained a court-ordered asset freeze in an acai-berry fraud case.

    Charged along with CCN were Graham D. Gibson, Michael A. McKenzy and four companies that shared the same Phoenix street address : iLife Health and Wellness LLC; Simply Naturals LLC; Health and Beauty Solutions LLC; and Fit for Life LLC.

    The FTC’s case file includes statements from Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Inc. and author and TV personality Rachel Ray that they never endorsed acai-berry products as the alleged scammers claimed and that their intellectual property was being abused.

    The FTC’s action may send shockwaves across Internet Marketing slime pits, which routinely trade on celebrity names to sanitize “business opportunities” that imply famous people and entities endorse offers that appear online.

    At the same time, the FTC action may have a chilling effect on online hucksters who make misleading or unproven claims that their products cure anything from cancer to obesity.

    A big part of the scheme centered on bogus “free trial” offers and corrupt billing practices in which “numerous unauthorized charges” were made to customers’ credit-cards and debit cards, the FTC alleged.

    Another part of the scheme centered on false claims that using a product known as AcaiPure “could lead to rapid and substantial weight loss,” the FTC charged.

    “Too many ‘free’ offers come with strings attached,” said David Vladeck, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “In this case, the defendants promised buyers a ‘risk free’ trial and then illegally billed their credit cards again and again — and again.”

    Vladeck said the FTC estimated “that about a million people have fallen victim to this scam,” with the scheme spreading in part owing to the fraudsters’ use of “fake endorsements” from Winfrey and Ray.

    “Ms. Oprah Winfrey has never endorsed or approved AcaiPure,” said Douglas J. Pattison, chief executive officer of Harpo Inc.

    In fact, Pattison said in court filings, Winfrey “has never endorsed any acai berry supplement or acai berry related product by name” and “has never approved or agreed to have her image or name used in conjunction with the sale and marketing of any acai berry related product.”

    Winfrey sued more than 40 companies for trademark infringement last year, amid claims scammers were using her image and brand to fleece the public.

    For her part, Ray said in court filings that she, too, had been victimized by Internet Marketers who used her image and brand to pull off fraud schemes.

    “I did not approve or agree to the use of my name or my image on this website. . . . I have never used, endorsed or approved AcaiPure. I am not associated with nor do I endorse or approve any acai berry product, company or online solicitation of such products, including AcaiPure,” Ray said.

    In another move that may cause great unease in the part of the Internet Marketing landscape that entitles itself to divine testimonials and plant the seed that famous people endorse their fraudulent offers, the FTC included photos of the websites and shared a video that allegedly made fraudulent claims.

    Visit the FTC website to view the video.

  • DEVELOPING STORY: Online Claims About Acai Berry On FTC’s Radar Screen; Agency To Announce Action Against ‘Internet Marketers’ Next Week In Chicago (Oprah’s City)

    In this YouTube promo for Data Network Affiliates (DNA), the images of Donald Trump and Oprah Winfrey streamed for 10 continuous minutes. There is no evidence that either celebrity endorsed the company. Claims also were made on YouTube that Apple Inc. had a special "branding" relationship with DNA. No evidence to support the claim has surfaced.

    In 2009, Oprah Winfrey sued more than 40 companies for trademark infringement amid claims they were fleecing the public by implying she endorsed their Acai berry products.

    Winfrey, an American television and business icon, is based in Chicago. Harpo Productions, which produces The Oprah Winfrey Show and The Dr. Oz Show, filed the infringement lawsuit on behalf of Winfrey and Dr. Mehmet Oz, a heart surgeon.

    “Neither Ms. Winfrey nor Dr. Oz has ever sponsored or endorsed any acai, resveratrol or dietary supplement product and cannot vouch for their safety or effectiveness,” Harpo said on the Oprah website last year. “It is our intention to put an end to these companies’ false claims and increasingly deceptive practices.”

    Oz issued a statement last year on the Oprah site, saying scammers were using his name to swindle the public.

    “The companies that are using my name to hawk these products are duping the public,” Oz said. “I do not endorse any of these products. By falsely presenting products as ‘scientifically proven’ and endorsed by well-known figures, these companies do a gross disservice to the public health and could even pose a danger to those who believe their false and unproven claims. I am taking this step in the interest of public safety. I feel compelled to stand up against these companies and their deceitful practices.”

    The Federal Trade Commission announced today that its Chicago office will announce an “action against Internet Marketers of Acai berry weight-loss pills and ‘colon cleansers.’” The FTC announcement is expected Monday.

    It was not immediately clear if the agency’s decision to announce the news in Chicago was a coincidence. What is clear is that Winfrey’s name often is appropriated by scammers or purveyors of questionable “business opportunities” and products and services in a bid to leech off her brand  and drive sales.

    It also is clear that Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan is taking action against firms that falsely state or imply their products are endorsed by celebrities. The names of Winfrey and Oz are mentioned in three lawsuits Madigan filed last year.

    Other celebrity names mentioned in the Illinois lawsuits, which alleged deceptive trade practices for the manner in which products were marketed and customers were approached and billed, include Rachel Ray, Gweneth Paltrow, Courtney Love and Eva Longoria-Parker.

    Madigan said scammers linked the names of celebrities to purported deals that involved free trials and claims of weight loss.

    “For thousands of dieters, the quest for a miracle product has become a nightmare,” Madigan said last year. “Far too often, consumers end up losing their money — not  weight — in these deals.”

    The attorney general did not mince words when describing bogus marketing practices.

    “We must hold these Internet scammers accountable for their role in a seedy marketing game that steers unsuspecting consumers to online schemes,” Madigan said. “We also need to send a clear message to other marketers and networks in the business of designing misleading, traffic-enticing schemes.”

    Earlier this year, Winfrey’s image appeared for 10 consecutive minutes in a YouTube video pitch for Data Network Affiliates (DNA), which purports to assist law enforcement in locating abducted children. The image of Donald Trump, another American business and entertainment icon, appeared in the same pitch.

    Other YouTube pitches for DNA implied that the company had a special, cell-phone branding deal with Apple Inc., which brought the world the iPhone.

    Neither the Winfrey organization nor the Trump organization returned calls from the PP Blog earlier this year. Apple also did not return calls.

    It is common for multilevel-marketing (MLM) participants to make fantastic claims about products, including false claims they are endorsed by celebrities and captains of industry.

    The ad for DNA that included Winfrey’s image appeared months after she filed the lawsuit in the Acai berry cases last year. One DNA pitchman said in a conference call earlier this year that the company  had “certain people on speed dial that’s incredible.”