Bitcoin Trademark Troll Now Sending Bogus DMCA Takedowns 120
An anonymous reader writes "A couple weeks ago, Slashdot wrote about a lawyer named Michael Pascazi, who was trying to trademark Bitcoin. Techdirt picked up on the story, including Pascazi's evidence of the trademark. Pascazi has now sent Techdirt a bogus DMCA takedown request over the post, claiming that the header and footer in his stationery, which appears via an embed on the story, violates his copyright. He appears to be claiming that simply posting any version of his stationery is a copyright violation. It's not clear if the content in question is even copyrightable, and if it is, how Techdirt's use isn't fair use."
Gives lawyers everywhere a bad name. (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Gives lawyers everywhere a bad name. (Score:2, Insightful)
Today, in news, Michael Pascazi was launched into the sun by a unanimous vote of the worlds population, on charges of being a complete douche.
Re:Fraud (Score:5, Insightful)
Worse than simple fraud, it is wilful abuse of the DMCA provisions for takedown notices. This is no simple businessman who might not understand the technical details of the DMCA -- this is a person whose profession is the practice of law -- someone who should know better and is expected to know better. I'd like to read the next story about him being disbarred.
HAHAHA! He's not even using the Trademark right! (Score:4, Insightful)
A trademark, according to US law, has to be an adjective. Hence "Band-Aid brand bandages". He's using it purely as a noun "Bitcoins are..." His trademark can be easily struck down on that basis alone. Ironically, using a trademark as a noun is exactly the thing that depreciates the trademark as a protectable entity. (Again: See Band-Aid. They fought and fought to make sure that people not just call all bandages "band-aids", because using their trademark as a noun instead of an adjective is what dilutes it.)