Ford is suing companies for use of Mustang name?
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jerry S
New Member
mccance said:
I said it here once and it is worth repeating; any Mustang owner going to the Woodward Dream Cruise this year should put a banner on their car to call attention to what what Ford is doing to us. That would most certainly get mentioned in either the Freep or the Det News and then get picked up by other papers from there.
MineralMan
Active Member
I've read through this thread, and plan on doing my part. We need to continue to push with the letters to Mr. Ford and the support from the enthusiasts. It wasn't too long ago that a similar grass-roots effort by enthusiasts actually saved the Mustang.
Remember back in the mid 1980s... this was destined to be the Mustang:
When word got out that Ford was planning to replace the V8 RWD Mustang with a Mazda based FWD 4-cyl car in 1988, the enthusiasts cried foul. So much support from the enthusiast community showed that this move would cost Ford dearly in lost sales. Ford quickly switch gears, changed the name to Probe and the Mustang continued on. We then got all of the great late-model Mustangs that we are so fond of... the Cobra, the Bullitt, the 99-04 GT, the Terminator Cobra, the Mach 1, and now the new 05-06 cars... and where is the Probe? Died a slow death in the mid 90s.
If we can get enough support behind this, maybe they will reconsider. Maybe....
Remember back in the mid 1980s... this was destined to be the Mustang:
When word got out that Ford was planning to replace the V8 RWD Mustang with a Mazda based FWD 4-cyl car in 1988, the enthusiasts cried foul. So much support from the enthusiast community showed that this move would cost Ford dearly in lost sales. Ford quickly switch gears, changed the name to Probe and the Mustang continued on. We then got all of the great late-model Mustangs that we are so fond of... the Cobra, the Bullitt, the 99-04 GT, the Terminator Cobra, the Mach 1, and now the new 05-06 cars... and where is the Probe? Died a slow death in the mid 90s.
If we can get enough support behind this, maybe they will reconsider. Maybe....
Fords starting on the websites now. Got this from another forum I go to.
Printed here verbetim is a notice from Allen Cross, the owner of the extremely poplular Ford Obsolete Forum, which provides a discussion forum for 1964-72 Mustangs and other Fords. Ford closed him down yesterday . . . who's next??
inre: My Forum post of a few minutes ago...
Ok, folks, its official - the folks at Ford (actually, one of their outside
law firms) have obtained a court order to seize Fomoco.com, as of
early this morning. They will also be claiming two other domains I'd
paid for, but never developed.
I can't be certain when the 'site will go dark, so I'm assuming that is
imminent. Due to the vagaries of on-line technology, it may already
be unreachable from wherever you are, in the world.
I will try to have a temporary web-board set up by noon, Eastern, tho'
I'm not sure if that's soon enough. Meanwhile, I'm writing to a few of
you, privately. Some of you guys know each other, so maybe you can
pitch in and try to contact the others? If the Forum's still running, you
can grab some eMail addresses, from there.
Guess that's it, for now. I'll post (and write) again, later...soon as I've
got time & something useful to say.
Regards,
Allen Cross
http://www.fomoco.com
Printed here verbetim is a notice from Allen Cross, the owner of the extremely poplular Ford Obsolete Forum, which provides a discussion forum for 1964-72 Mustangs and other Fords. Ford closed him down yesterday . . . who's next??
inre: My Forum post of a few minutes ago...
Ok, folks, its official - the folks at Ford (actually, one of their outside
law firms) have obtained a court order to seize Fomoco.com, as of
early this morning. They will also be claiming two other domains I'd
paid for, but never developed.
I can't be certain when the 'site will go dark, so I'm assuming that is
imminent. Due to the vagaries of on-line technology, it may already
be unreachable from wherever you are, in the world.
I will try to have a temporary web-board set up by noon, Eastern, tho'
I'm not sure if that's soon enough. Meanwhile, I'm writing to a few of
you, privately. Some of you guys know each other, so maybe you can
pitch in and try to contact the others? If the Forum's still running, you
can grab some eMail addresses, from there.
Guess that's it, for now. I'll post (and write) again, later...soon as I've
got time & something useful to say.
Regards,
Allen Cross
http://www.fomoco.com
jikelly
Dirt-Old 20+Year Member
Damn that sucks. I've heard nothing back from anyone I've contacted about this issue. Have any of you had more luck getting the word out?
I agree, we've been thinking of trading in the Expedition on maybe the Magnum with the 6.1L Hemi.
I'm printing up some "Boycott Ford" signs to go in our '67 vert and '68 hardtop Mustangs for shows. I'll also print up fliers to pass out at shows explaining what Ford is doing. I can't believe there has been no news coverage of this
CochinoFilipino
Founding Member
I wonder why I haven't heard of the vendors teaming up to fight the $ demands.
They should get together, change their names and not pay the $.
They don't need 'Mustang' in their names, NPD and Year One seem to be doing alright.
They should get together, change their names and not pay the $.
They don't need 'Mustang' in their names, NPD and Year One seem to be doing alright.
CochinoFilipino said:
That's a good point, they should pool their resources and get a good legal defense. Maybe even start a legal defense fund.
The issue isn't so much that they need "Mustang" in their name - it's the huge costs associated with changing a company name, lost name recognition, etc etc. At the end of the day it costs hundreds of thousands for a company like MustansPlus or Mustang Depot.
Notice regarding Ford battling its Aftermarket Community
I set up a website that puts together all the information on this issue, please visit it at FightFord.org. There are free protest packages, and links to all the petitions at the site.
Written by: Anonymous Mustang Enthusiast / Business Associate
For those of you who are not familiar with recently exposed affairs of Ford Motor Company, this article should serve to summarize and give further insight into what is taking place. Ford is actively threatening and filing suit against all companies using the word Mustang in their company name.
As more articles and information come to the table, the gravity of this situation further shows itself. Unfortunately, none of the current articles/forum posts written to date have established exactly how deep this issue really goes. I have heard things said along the lines of, “Who cares about MustangsPlus(One of the first to come public), I don’t buy from them anyway” or “I can’t believe Ford is trying to get $10,000 dollars.” This war goes far beyond the scope of just a few companies, and the moneys involved are much more significant than ten thousand dollars. This is a legal war being brought to dozens of companies, and Ford has indicated many times that they are not stopping there. This issue threatens the entire Mustang aftermarket business and community.
Below is a list of companies I can confirm have received cease and desist orders from Ford. I can assure you there are many more who have not spoken publicly about it.
CaliforniaMustang.com || Cal-Mustang.com || MustangTuning.com || MustangsUnlimited.com || TexasMustang.com || DallasMustang.com || MustangDepot.com || StangParts.com || Sacramento-Mustang.com || MustangsPlus.com
I have talked to many of these store owners and can confidently say several of these stores have already been served lawsuits in Michigan. As those of you who have been involved in lawsuits know they are extremely time consuming and can be financially devastating. I do not want to speak on behalf of these companies but can safely assume that not all of these companies are in a financial position to defend themselves against a multibillion dollar company.
As I mentioned above this legal war with Ford will have devastating effects on both the industry and Mustang hobby. The aftermath of Ford’s action will initially disrupt the mustang aftermarket industry but will eventually trickle down and affect each and every mustang enthusiast. A pending lawsuit of this magnitude will immediately cause Mustang shops to divert resources. Time, money and attention will be spent on the impeding legal battles, and not on essential business affairs. Many of these core business functions are what keep the Mustang industry and community alive and growing. One of the most important services these businesses offer to the Mustang community is development of new products. Mustang aftermarket shops play a large role developing new products for the aftermarket community. They are on the frontline when it comes to talking to mustang enthusiasts and getting the ball rolling on the latest aftermarket mods. Some shops take it to the next level and have products manufactured in house. Others will work as the middle man letting the big manufacturers know where there is demand. The food chain of new product development is being greatly impacted.
The other services aftermarket shops offer to the community include, but are not limited to advertising, sponsorships and promotional events. Advertising dollars have become increasingly valuable to the mustang community with the recent increase in websites dedicated to mustangs, online forums, and new mustang magazines. These new media outlets are popping up because the advertising dollar is there to support them.
As some of you may have read in “Mustang Monthly” Ford lawyers have made direct threats to these media outlets. They have threatened to sue the websites, forums and large magazines that use mustang in their name. While I find it unlikely Ford would pursue lawsuits against these outlets, the reality is the Ford doesn’t need to directly attack these media outlets to hurt them. Mustang aftermarket shops are what fuel these websites, forums, and magazines. I am sure you have all noticed the abundance of ads on forums, websites and print magazines. These ads are what pay the bills. They keep the forums you visit every day running, and the staff at these magazines working diligently. As advertisers become occupied fighting this absurd dispute surely the funding and eventually the quality of these resources will fade.
Prosecuting the mustang aftermarket shops is an attack on the entire mustang community. The successful history of the Mustang can be attributed in strong part to the Mustang community and their support, loyalty, and love for the Mustang car. This leaves us with many unanswered questions. Why are they attacking the very companies that promote their product? Why are they going after the Mustang enthusiasts that support and love their cars? Why now, when many of these businesses have been around for decades? While it is easy for us to foresee the damage Ford will be doing to themselves in the long term, the law firms in charge are much too short sighted to understand this, or care either way.
Thus far, one Ford representative, Mustang Marketing director Jim Owens, has come forward and made efforts to slap some sense into Ford’s legal firms. This excerpt below shows he has begun to make efforts to get to the bottom of this,
“I met with Jim Owens, Ford’s Mustang Marketing Manager, during last weekend’s Mid-America Shelby Meet in Tulsa. Jim relayed to me that he was not aware of the legal department’s pursuit of companies using the Mustang name until someone sent him an advance copy of my editorial. He immediately went to the legal department and told them that the enforcement was not to the benefit of Ford Motor Company. Jim told me that as a result of his meeting(s) with legal, the cease and desist letters are no longer being sent out and that they are trying to figure out how to resolve the situation with companies that have already been contacted. Also, they are working on some type of licensing program that would allow companies in good standing to continue using the Mustang name, perhaps with something as simple as a $1 licensing fee. Nothing is official yet, but I reiterated to Jim that time is of the essence, seeing how many of the contacted companies are spending money every week on lawyers and legal fees.” - Donald Farr, Editor Mustang Monthly Magazine
I was thrilled when I first came across this statement. It shows that the efforts being made with the media, the people, and the petitions, have finally broken the surface. This is a major step in the battle. A representative of Ford has made clear acknowledgement as to the harm that these issues will cause to their company. I applaud Jim for the effort he is making. Unfortunately, I can ensure you the legal battles have not come to an end, and are far from over. I am aware of continuing legal action, as well as new threats being made by Ford’s legal department. It appears as if Jim’s efforts may not have been strong enough to put this issue to sleep. Regardless, this is the type of thing that has the potential to make good progress, so it can be viewed as a hurdle crossed.
Many of your favorite Mustang shops are still paying lawyers day in and day out to defend this fatal issue. Things occur slowly at large companies, and it is difficult to get a company of Ford’s size to change anything. Nothing short of a continued outpouring of support and tremendous effort on the part of the Mustang community will put an end to this struggle.
It is times like these when I am disgraced to bleed Blue.
-FightFord.org
I set up a website that puts together all the information on this issue, please visit it at FightFord.org. There are free protest packages, and links to all the petitions at the site.
Written by: Anonymous Mustang Enthusiast / Business Associate
For those of you who are not familiar with recently exposed affairs of Ford Motor Company, this article should serve to summarize and give further insight into what is taking place. Ford is actively threatening and filing suit against all companies using the word Mustang in their company name.
As more articles and information come to the table, the gravity of this situation further shows itself. Unfortunately, none of the current articles/forum posts written to date have established exactly how deep this issue really goes. I have heard things said along the lines of, “Who cares about MustangsPlus(One of the first to come public), I don’t buy from them anyway” or “I can’t believe Ford is trying to get $10,000 dollars.” This war goes far beyond the scope of just a few companies, and the moneys involved are much more significant than ten thousand dollars. This is a legal war being brought to dozens of companies, and Ford has indicated many times that they are not stopping there. This issue threatens the entire Mustang aftermarket business and community.
Below is a list of companies I can confirm have received cease and desist orders from Ford. I can assure you there are many more who have not spoken publicly about it.
CaliforniaMustang.com || Cal-Mustang.com || MustangTuning.com || MustangsUnlimited.com || TexasMustang.com || DallasMustang.com || MustangDepot.com || StangParts.com || Sacramento-Mustang.com || MustangsPlus.com
I have talked to many of these store owners and can confidently say several of these stores have already been served lawsuits in Michigan. As those of you who have been involved in lawsuits know they are extremely time consuming and can be financially devastating. I do not want to speak on behalf of these companies but can safely assume that not all of these companies are in a financial position to defend themselves against a multibillion dollar company.
As I mentioned above this legal war with Ford will have devastating effects on both the industry and Mustang hobby. The aftermath of Ford’s action will initially disrupt the mustang aftermarket industry but will eventually trickle down and affect each and every mustang enthusiast. A pending lawsuit of this magnitude will immediately cause Mustang shops to divert resources. Time, money and attention will be spent on the impeding legal battles, and not on essential business affairs. Many of these core business functions are what keep the Mustang industry and community alive and growing. One of the most important services these businesses offer to the Mustang community is development of new products. Mustang aftermarket shops play a large role developing new products for the aftermarket community. They are on the frontline when it comes to talking to mustang enthusiasts and getting the ball rolling on the latest aftermarket mods. Some shops take it to the next level and have products manufactured in house. Others will work as the middle man letting the big manufacturers know where there is demand. The food chain of new product development is being greatly impacted.
The other services aftermarket shops offer to the community include, but are not limited to advertising, sponsorships and promotional events. Advertising dollars have become increasingly valuable to the mustang community with the recent increase in websites dedicated to mustangs, online forums, and new mustang magazines. These new media outlets are popping up because the advertising dollar is there to support them.
As some of you may have read in “Mustang Monthly” Ford lawyers have made direct threats to these media outlets. They have threatened to sue the websites, forums and large magazines that use mustang in their name. While I find it unlikely Ford would pursue lawsuits against these outlets, the reality is the Ford doesn’t need to directly attack these media outlets to hurt them. Mustang aftermarket shops are what fuel these websites, forums, and magazines. I am sure you have all noticed the abundance of ads on forums, websites and print magazines. These ads are what pay the bills. They keep the forums you visit every day running, and the staff at these magazines working diligently. As advertisers become occupied fighting this absurd dispute surely the funding and eventually the quality of these resources will fade.
Prosecuting the mustang aftermarket shops is an attack on the entire mustang community. The successful history of the Mustang can be attributed in strong part to the Mustang community and their support, loyalty, and love for the Mustang car. This leaves us with many unanswered questions. Why are they attacking the very companies that promote their product? Why are they going after the Mustang enthusiasts that support and love their cars? Why now, when many of these businesses have been around for decades? While it is easy for us to foresee the damage Ford will be doing to themselves in the long term, the law firms in charge are much too short sighted to understand this, or care either way.
Thus far, one Ford representative, Mustang Marketing director Jim Owens, has come forward and made efforts to slap some sense into Ford’s legal firms. This excerpt below shows he has begun to make efforts to get to the bottom of this,
“I met with Jim Owens, Ford’s Mustang Marketing Manager, during last weekend’s Mid-America Shelby Meet in Tulsa. Jim relayed to me that he was not aware of the legal department’s pursuit of companies using the Mustang name until someone sent him an advance copy of my editorial. He immediately went to the legal department and told them that the enforcement was not to the benefit of Ford Motor Company. Jim told me that as a result of his meeting(s) with legal, the cease and desist letters are no longer being sent out and that they are trying to figure out how to resolve the situation with companies that have already been contacted. Also, they are working on some type of licensing program that would allow companies in good standing to continue using the Mustang name, perhaps with something as simple as a $1 licensing fee. Nothing is official yet, but I reiterated to Jim that time is of the essence, seeing how many of the contacted companies are spending money every week on lawyers and legal fees.” - Donald Farr, Editor Mustang Monthly Magazine
I was thrilled when I first came across this statement. It shows that the efforts being made with the media, the people, and the petitions, have finally broken the surface. This is a major step in the battle. A representative of Ford has made clear acknowledgement as to the harm that these issues will cause to their company. I applaud Jim for the effort he is making. Unfortunately, I can ensure you the legal battles have not come to an end, and are far from over. I am aware of continuing legal action, as well as new threats being made by Ford’s legal department. It appears as if Jim’s efforts may not have been strong enough to put this issue to sleep. Regardless, this is the type of thing that has the potential to make good progress, so it can be viewed as a hurdle crossed.
Many of your favorite Mustang shops are still paying lawyers day in and day out to defend this fatal issue. Things occur slowly at large companies, and it is difficult to get a company of Ford’s size to change anything. Nothing short of a continued outpouring of support and tremendous effort on the part of the Mustang community will put an end to this struggle.
It is times like these when I am disgraced to bleed Blue.
-FightFord.org
reenmachine
Dirt-Old 20+Year Member
zookeeper
Founding Member
It sounds to me like Ford's size is working against itself. How else could you explain that the Mustang Marketing Director doesn't even know about the lawsuit beforehand? Either way, I'm sick of Ford treating my hobby like a pissing post unless it benefits them in selling their new Mustangs. I'm also still waiting for any comment from one of the drones at Ford in response to the letter expressing my concerns.
StangDreamin'
Founding Member
For further consideration....
... I brought this issue up in the "General Discussion" forum at 150online.com. The response was "interesting", to say the least1 Couple-three post going "What?"; followed by a post from one of the Admin's which started out with, "These are the kinds of posts I'm talking about our having to shut down."; and continuing with questions of my paranoia and a very self-assured (and slightly creepy) "WE (f150online) are not going to be touched" -type of statement. Hmmmmmmmm.....
I've been hitting f150online a lot recently - almost as much as StangNet - because (for those who have been living in a cave) I ended up replacing the Rice-Eating Generic Chevy Truck with a 4x4 F150 SCab. F150online is a pretty great resource and reference for my new-to-me truck (even saving up to blow some dough with one of their major sponsors); although most of the users seem to think of their trucks as "Mustangs with really big open trunks". On the other hand, I wonder about their "Fuhgeddaboutit" attitude regarding this discussion thread.
Gotta find something like the Ford Trucks Enthusiast forum (ford-trucks.com.... I wonder if they're being tagged as well); only more oriented towards the 97 and up models and the use of trucks as, well, trucks.
... I brought this issue up in the "General Discussion" forum at 150online.com. The response was "interesting", to say the least1 Couple-three post going "What?"; followed by a post from one of the Admin's which started out with, "These are the kinds of posts I'm talking about our having to shut down."; and continuing with questions of my paranoia and a very self-assured (and slightly creepy) "WE (f150online) are not going to be touched" -type of statement. Hmmmmmmmm.....
I've been hitting f150online a lot recently - almost as much as StangNet - because (for those who have been living in a cave) I ended up replacing the Rice-Eating Generic Chevy Truck with a 4x4 F150 SCab. F150online is a pretty great resource and reference for my new-to-me truck (even saving up to blow some dough with one of their major sponsors); although most of the users seem to think of their trucks as "Mustangs with really big open trunks". On the other hand, I wonder about their "Fuhgeddaboutit" attitude regarding this discussion thread.
Gotta find something like the Ford Trucks Enthusiast forum (ford-trucks.com.... I wonder if they're being tagged as well); only more oriented towards the 97 and up models and the use of trucks as, well, trucks.
Hack
15 Year Member
Please everyone that hates Ford now and wants to get rid of their Mustangs PM me and I will arrange to come pick up your car.
Hack said:Please everyone that hates Ford now and wants to get rid of their Mustangs PM me and I will arrange to come pick up your car.
LOL, just because some lawyers are making Ford look bad doesn't mean I don't love my horsies as much as always
I do have faith that Ford will pursue a more reasonable course that will allow them to fully protect their trademarks without causing businesses to change their name. I just wonder how long it will take...
jerry S
New Member
Hack said:Please everyone that hates Ford now and wants to get rid of their Mustangs PM me and I will arrange to come pick up your car.
Although I won't sell my mustang out of spite because of this, I won't be buying a new Ford in the future. I am a marketers dream: the brand loyal consumer with lots of money to spend. However, my brand loyalty can go the other way too and that will work against Ford in this case as far as my own situation goes. I am sure I am not alone in this.
reenmachine
Dirt-Old 20+Year Member
This may be the case, but in the meantime Ford is doing irreparable damage to many businesses. Even if Ford calls it all completely off, much damage has already been done. They lose my brand loyalty for being stupid enough in the first place to think that it would be a good idea to alienate their most loyal customers right when they needed us most.68keyblr said:
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