domain NFL related names: e.g. myPatriots.net, myFalcons.net, mySteelers.net etc...

[hybone]

2 to 3 months ago, the current Superbowl champ, the Indianapolis Colts finally launched their much anticipated fans social networking site www.myColts.net .

So far it has seen nice and steady growth and is expected to continue doing so. Other NFL teams have expressed interest in possibly using the myColts platform to launch similar fan social networking sites.

I happen to have domains in that naming convention for about half of the NFL teams as listed below. Currently I've just set up aggregation sites for these domains.

What do you guys think are the value for each of these sites?

www.My49ers.net - San Francisco 49ers
www.MyBroncos.net - Denver Broncos
www.MyBrowns.net - Cleveland Browns
www.MyBuccaneers.net
www.MyBucs.net - Tampa Bay Buccaneers
www.MyChargers.net - San Diego Chargers
www.MyChiefs.net - Kansas City Chiefs
www.MyFalcons.net - Atlanta Falcons
www.MyNYGiants.net - New York Giants
www.MyLions.net - Detroit Lions
www.MyPackers.net - Green Bay Packers
www.MyPanthers.com - Carolina Panthers
www.MyPatriots.net - New England Patriots
www.MyRams.net - St. Louis Rams
www.MyRavens.net - Baltimore Ravens
www.MyRedskins.net - Washington Redskins
www.MySteelers.net - Pittsburgh Steelers
www.MyTexans.net - Houston Texans


I also have domains in that naming convention for half of the teams for the NBA, MLB, MLS, and NHL.

Thanks for your help.

 

[hybone]

Anybody has any idea for an appraisal on these names? Much appreciated.

 

[hybone]

I don't think so. If I have my(city_name)(team_name).net then I can see why it might have some problem.

For example, myFalcons.net can mean many things other than the Atlanta Falcons.

The Eagles were thinking of launching their own social networking site and I actually gave them myEagles.net for free.

 

[notlikeyou]

Your initial post shows the bad faith that you are looking to use the names in association with the respective NFL teams, the adsense on the page illustrates that you are profiting from using their brands. I'm not attempting to be a jerk just looking to save you headache down the road. By no means am I an expert but from what I've read if it's a 100% fan site should be fine, but if you are
using the name in correlation to football & add the monetization it might be an issue. You also might want to ask in the legal section.
Best of luck!

here's a related thread http://www.namepros.com/legal-issues-and-disputes/376912-tm-issues-with-pro-sports.html

If you have any doubt just look at DNQuest.com's signature line

 

[hybone]

Thanks for your thoughts. The sites I have there are just that, placeholders as I don't promote, market, or advertise those sites.

The ideal situation is if a die hard fan bought it and turn it into a fan site by devoting his/her entire attention to it.

I've seen many sites with names of teams in their domain, but I've never heard of any TM issues arising from that. If I am a Texans fan, I don't see the Houston Texans coming after me for myTexans.net .

 

[000]

Please note that if any of these teams do come after you, you'll have a hard time pulling off the whole "But I'm a fan of the team!" excuse, considering that you own similar domains for half the teams in four different leagues. You'll have one heck of a time convincing the judge that you're a fan of each of those teams.

In my opinion, in any legal battle regarding these names, I'm pretty sure that you would lose. You are clearly trying to profit off the success of the MyColts site.

 

[hybone]

Please note that if any of these teams do come after you, you'll have a hard time pulling off the whole "But I'm a fan of the team!" excuse, considering that you own similar domains for half the teams in four different leagues. You'll have one heck of a time convincing the judge that you're a fan of each of those teams.

In my opinion, in any legal battle regarding these names, I'm pretty sure that you would lose. You are clearly trying to profit off the success of the MyColts site.

Is it such a "novelty" profiting from success of A translating into B? This is America afterall.

If I am going around touting to be affiliated with the teams, and try to make money off of that affiliation, then I can see problems. If I simply just hold the domains, and if the teams want to use them to launch their sites, chances are they'll probably buy them from me instead of spending money for lawyers to get it from me. I am not holding them hostage ... like I said, if they want it, i might sell it to them, or give it to them.

Any law suits stemming from this is a complete waste of money on the teams part in my opinion.

 

[sashas]

Is it such a "novelty" profiting from success of A translating into B? This is America afterall.

If I am going around touting to be affiliated with the teams, and try to make money off of that affiliation, then I can see problems. If I simply just hold the domains, and if the teams want to use them to launch their sites, chances are they'll probably buy them from me instead of spending money for lawyers to get it from me. I am not holding them hostage ... like I said, if they want it, i might sell it to them, or give it to them.

Any law suits stemming from this is a complete waste of money on the teams part in my opinion.

You have it figured totally wrong. Thats not how it works. Domain names are big business and a serious TM infringement. They will first likely send you a C&D, and then file a lawsuit. They would rather see $20k go down in legal fees than pay you $200 bucks for each name, simply because for many companies, it becomes a personal matter, a matter of protecting what is rightfully theirs (i.e., their TM)

So I would seriously refrain from adopting the gung-ho attitude. For all you know, you might actually be successful. But with such a huge list of names, its quite probable that one of them might go after you with a lawsuit. And yes, even one lawsuit is enough to really drain you financially (and not to talk of the stress). Get two, and you have a huge huge liability.

 

[hybone]

You have it figured totally wrong. Thats not how it works. Domain names are big business and a serious TM infringement. They will first likely send you a C&D, and then file a lawsuit. They would rather see $20k go down in legal fees than pay you $200 bucks for each name, simply because for many companies, it becomes a personal matter, a matter of protecting what is rightfully theirs (i.e., their TM)

So I would seriously refrain from adopting the gung-ho attitude. For all you know, you might actually be successful. But with such a huge list of names, its quite probable that one of them might go after you with a lawsuit. And yes, even one lawsuit is enough to really drain you financially (and not to talk of the stress). Get two, and you have a huge huge liability.

Well thanks for all the warning and all, I really do appreciate it. I am not worried about it since it is not like I am trying to start a franchise using any of their names, or pretending to be affiliates.

The last time I did a TM search, teams only TM (City_name)(Team_Name). Nowhere did they claim TM on just the "Team Name" itself. I have the team names in the domains, not the city names. Many forums have the team names in their domain as well, and are also selling ads on their site. So these teams will most probably go after these forums before they go after anybody else, if at all.

I think some of you are jumping the gun a little too much ... because if you do any searches for teams fans forums, 80% of them have the team's name (just like I have the team name in the domain) in their domains with no trouble.

And again, I am in no way trying to stir things up and if the NFL and the individual teams really have nothing better to do than to spend the time and money to get them, then I guess I'll go with the flow.