Are Ikea lawyers on a trademark crusade? The Swedish furniture giant Ikea has made two attempts in recent months to knock out a pair of high-profile websites where some of their biggest fans gather, Ikeahackers.com and Ikeafans.com. Both sites operated peacefully for several years, but now Ikea has demanded the websites must be transferred to its control.
Last month, the founder of Ikeahackers.com was served with a "cease and desist" letter ordering her to hand over the Web domain, eight years after Jules Yap (a pseudonym) founded it. After a massive online outcry, Ikea has backed away from its demands, at least for the time being.
The case of Ikeafans.com is similar, in that it experienced a long period of cooperation with the famed Swedish chain and is now locked in conflict with Ikea lawyers. After nearly two years of negotiations failed, the founders of Ikeafans.com, James and Susan Martin, lawyered up and prepared to plead their case in federal court. They filed a lawsuit (PDF), seeking a ruling that Ikea breached its contract with the owners and the "implied license" that it gave the site to use the trademarks.
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