A bill proposed by New York State Senator Betty Little will ban all New York state residents from owning a web address of any other living person.

“An Internet presence is a must for almost all businesses today,� Little said in a prepared statement issued Tuesday. “An essential part of attracting and keeping customers is having a web address that is easy to remember and helps point people, searching the web, in the direction of your business.

Wait a sec. here Betty. I thought we were talking about a persons name and now you’re talking about a business. You “prepared” this statement ? I don’t disagree with you about domains being an essential part of business. You do seem to know your stuff about what makes a domain important, but let’s not confuse the issues here please Senator. And if you did your job, you’d know the fine state of New York is in the same country that has the Lanham Act and the Anti-Cybersquatting law already on the books.

Approved by Gov. Eliot Spitzer Aug, 1, the law will prohibit a person or entity from registering a domain name that consists of the name of another living person, or a name substantially and confusingly similar thereto, without that person’s or entity’s consent if there is specific intent to profit from such name by selling the domain name for financial gain to that person or any third party. The law does not punish those who accidentally register a name that is or could be confused with another living person’s name. Violations are punishable by a civil penalty of up to $1,000 for each day the violation occurs.

So, then can I register a persons name if I have no intentions of selling it to them ? What if I just want to own the domain and put up pictures of the person with food all over there mouth or even use it for ppc ? Is that ok ? It seems to read that way. What a great piece of legislation ! I’m so glad we have great politicians in this country who understand the technology and current laws that govern it so that they can protect the “internets” and make sure our “tubes” don’t get blocked up.

UPDATE: I just added a link to the Senators press release. She must be proud of this great new law. <sigh> The Senator’s law apparently also includes business names as well. This is even worse than I first assumed

A measure sponsored by Senator Betty Little (R,C,I-Queensbury) aimed at preventing a person from registering a domain name that is similar to or the same as another living person or business with the specific intent to profit from selling the domain name to that person or business has been signed into law.

I guess we will have to wait to see exactly what the law says in the books, unless of course one of the lawyers who might be reading this wants to give us the info. This law is setting precedents for sure and the continuing saga should be watched by all involved in internet business and domains.

In addition, the New York State Attorney General is enabled to apply to the Supreme Court for an injunction, including forfeiture or cancellation of the domain name. The registrar, domain name registry or other domain name registration authority will not be liable for injunctive or monetary relief under this section except in bad faith or reckless disregard, which includes willful failure to comply with any court order.

[Update] Apparently the bill was already approved by Gov. Elliot Spitzer on August 1st..

[seen first over at Elliots Blog] and sourced from the Adirondack Daily Enterprise

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