Post by PryncessJenn on Nov 20, 2004 21:32:42 GMT -5
A 74-year-old widow says she's shocked after being taken to court by Vancouver 2010 Olympic copyright cops.
Ingrid Homberg claimed yesterday she was merely trying to sell a Whistler home on a website she set up with her son earlier this year.
"I don't know what we should do," said Homberg at her Brackendale home. "My husband was a dental surgeon and he died last year. He would have laughed."
The Vancouver Olympic Organization Committee filed a suit this week against Algino Holdings, Whistler Olympic Real Estate and owners Ingrid and Ernst Homberg.
Ingrid said Algino Holdings was set up to sell the $1.125-million home and that there is no such company as Whistler Olympic Real Estate.
"It isn't true what they told us," she said. "We have no real-estate company. We only have one house for sale."
She said the website, www.whistler-olympic.com was set up in May, on which she advertised the home.
She said the advertisement used the words Whistler Olympic real estate to describe the property, noting the Games were coming as a selling feature.
When the Olympic committee lawyers wrote her a "very strong letter," she said she and her son disconnected the site.
She said she didn't sell the home and it was rented about two weeks ago.
Her son, lawyer Ernst Nikolaus Homberg, also named in the suit, said he plans to file a statement of defence and "probably" a countersuit.
"This is an outrageous lawsuit," he said. "It's an abuse of the court and it's slander. I will respond without compassion but swiftly and without mercy."
He said the family registered the domain name, which was not one of those reserved by Olympic organizers.
"We used this name in connection with something that had nothing to do with the Olympic Games," he said. "We had advertised the house in Whistler on our website."
He said that 2010 lawyers asked him for the Internet domain name and he offered to give it to them.
After he didn't "hear a peep" from them, he sold it for $10 on Oct. 30.
"It's no longer our website," he said. "Because they hadn't written, even after I told them they could have it, they didn't respond. They were probably too busy abusing other people."
Today the website features an advertisement for "cellphone movies" and has a provocative photo of a blond woman wearing scanty underwear.
Vancouver 2010 Olympic spokesman Sam Corea said there was a "series of corrospondence" with the Homberg mother and son which resulted in the writ.
"When it comes to protecting the Olympic brand, actions meed to be taken," he said. "We have documentation which is laid out in the writ."
In the writ, Whistler Olympic Real Estate is accused of using trademarks for a website and failing to indicate it is not associated with the 2010 Games.
The writ claims the website has "meta-tags" or hidden text that includes terms including "Olympic, 2010 Vancouver and Olympic Games."
Because of the "materially false, deceptive and misleading advertising, acts and practices" the Olympic committee has suffered and will continue to suffer loss, damage and expense to its reputation and goodwill, says the write, which seeks damages and costs.
The Vancouver 2010 Olympic committee also filed a suit against Olympic Valley Registered Trade Services Ltd., saying it used Olympic trademarks and the Olympic flames on websites promoting the company.
Canadian Olympic Committee lawyers have told Olympia pasta and pizza restaurant in Vancouver to remove signs using the Olympic rings and torch by the end of the month.
Owner Mosi Alvand says he plans to fight the ban and has launched an Internet petition opposing it.
Ingrid Homberg claimed yesterday she was merely trying to sell a Whistler home on a website she set up with her son earlier this year.
"I don't know what we should do," said Homberg at her Brackendale home. "My husband was a dental surgeon and he died last year. He would have laughed."
The Vancouver Olympic Organization Committee filed a suit this week against Algino Holdings, Whistler Olympic Real Estate and owners Ingrid and Ernst Homberg.
Ingrid said Algino Holdings was set up to sell the $1.125-million home and that there is no such company as Whistler Olympic Real Estate.
"It isn't true what they told us," she said. "We have no real-estate company. We only have one house for sale."
She said the website, www.whistler-olympic.com was set up in May, on which she advertised the home.
She said the advertisement used the words Whistler Olympic real estate to describe the property, noting the Games were coming as a selling feature.
When the Olympic committee lawyers wrote her a "very strong letter," she said she and her son disconnected the site.
She said she didn't sell the home and it was rented about two weeks ago.
Her son, lawyer Ernst Nikolaus Homberg, also named in the suit, said he plans to file a statement of defence and "probably" a countersuit.
"This is an outrageous lawsuit," he said. "It's an abuse of the court and it's slander. I will respond without compassion but swiftly and without mercy."
He said the family registered the domain name, which was not one of those reserved by Olympic organizers.
"We used this name in connection with something that had nothing to do with the Olympic Games," he said. "We had advertised the house in Whistler on our website."
He said that 2010 lawyers asked him for the Internet domain name and he offered to give it to them.
After he didn't "hear a peep" from them, he sold it for $10 on Oct. 30.
"It's no longer our website," he said. "Because they hadn't written, even after I told them they could have it, they didn't respond. They were probably too busy abusing other people."
Today the website features an advertisement for "cellphone movies" and has a provocative photo of a blond woman wearing scanty underwear.
Vancouver 2010 Olympic spokesman Sam Corea said there was a "series of corrospondence" with the Homberg mother and son which resulted in the writ.
"When it comes to protecting the Olympic brand, actions meed to be taken," he said. "We have documentation which is laid out in the writ."
In the writ, Whistler Olympic Real Estate is accused of using trademarks for a website and failing to indicate it is not associated with the 2010 Games.
The writ claims the website has "meta-tags" or hidden text that includes terms including "Olympic, 2010 Vancouver and Olympic Games."
Because of the "materially false, deceptive and misleading advertising, acts and practices" the Olympic committee has suffered and will continue to suffer loss, damage and expense to its reputation and goodwill, says the write, which seeks damages and costs.
The Vancouver 2010 Olympic committee also filed a suit against Olympic Valley Registered Trade Services Ltd., saying it used Olympic trademarks and the Olympic flames on websites promoting the company.
Canadian Olympic Committee lawyers have told Olympia pasta and pizza restaurant in Vancouver to remove signs using the Olympic rings and torch by the end of the month.
Owner Mosi Alvand says he plans to fight the ban and has launched an Internet petition opposing it.