Jennifer Lopez Kicks Squatter to the Cyber Curb

The star wins her case against an Arizona man using her name for profitable websites

By Breanne L. Heldman Apr 10, 2009 6:30 PMTags
Jennifer LopezAP Photo/Evan Agostini

Jenny may be from the block, but she's not going to let just anyone move onto her cyberspace.

Jennifer Lopez won her cybersquatting case against a Phoenix man who had laid claim to jenniferlopez.net and jenniferlopez.org to make a buck.

The World Intellectual Property Organization ruled that the two domain names owned by Jeremiah Tieman led J.Lo fans to a website that generated paid advertising revenues. The Out of Sight star officially registered her name in the U.S. in May 1999.

Tieman claimed the "fan sites" were meant to provide news and updates on the star, but arbitrator William Towns disagreed.

"[Tieman] registered two domain names that are identical to the complainant's mark and has used those domain names to attract Internet users to a website from which [he] generates pay-per-click advertising," Towns said in the ruling.

The arbitrator gave Tieman 10 days to transfer the web addresses to the Jennifer Lopez Foundation, the actress' charity relating to better health care for women and children.

Scarlett Johansson, Nicole Kidman, Madonna, Julia Roberts, Tom Cruise and other A-listers have dealt with similar cybersquatting issues.