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by yvoschaap2 3252 days ago
Yes, good eye. A great example of continuious testing SEO opportunities.

What if Google would start ranking directlyrics on specific 'azlyrics' queries? I haven't seen it happen yet, but if it worked... expect it to be reverted next week.
2 comments
bshimmin 3252 days ago
Right, so you're using one of your competitors' names quite prominently on your own site? And, er, you think that's ok?
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logfromblammo 3252 days ago
It's AZLyrics's responsibility to police their own trademarks, so it's okay, unless they say it is not in a C&D letter.

So it's legally okay, as far as we know.

Still a dick move, though. It's not okay in my opinion. But I'm not the one who may gain or lose thousands of dollars by deciding whether or not to do it, either. I can't say for certain whether it would be okay or not from outside my comfy judgment armchair.

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ScottBurson 3252 days ago
It's blatant, intentional trademark infringement for direct commercial gain. IANAL, but I would think this might result in something quite a bit more expensive than a C&D -- like a lawsuit with punitive damages.

ETA: and now the site owner is on record here on HN stating that the intent was to steal search traffic. I'm sure this is a cutthroat business ... but this is an open invitation for one's own throat to be cut.

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logfromblammo 3252 days ago
The USPTO trademark search system (TESS [0]) reveals that "azlyrics" is not a registered trademark [in the US].

If the company hasn't registered it, and doesn't enforce it, it is not a trademark.

[0] http://tess2.uspto.gov/

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yvoschaap2 3252 days ago
So many lawyers here on HN, I forgot...
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ScottBurson 3252 days ago
It's not us you need to worry about. Good luck!
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wumbolad 3252 days ago
Yeah man these people are crazy
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rhizome 3252 days ago
On "initial interest confusion":

http://www.klemchuk.com/30-trademark-infringement-by-meta-ta...

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ChristianBundy 3252 days ago
Yeah, that's incredibly shady.
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jethro_tell 3252 days ago
The whole thing is pretty parasitic.

'How I let other people create so I don't have to work'

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kornish 3252 days ago
Reminds me of how some companies will take out Adwords for direct competitors' names to show up in the top of search results for their competitors.
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JCharante 3252 days ago
So you're putting the name of a competitor on your site to see if it improves your seo? You're a madlad! I wonder if it'll work.
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