Celebrity Cyber Report – Run-DMC Sues Amazon.com, Walmart and Jet.com

Published On January 4, 2017 | By Tom Huskerson | Celebrity Cyber News

Run-DMC (Image from Run-DMC.com)

Darryl McDaniels, one of the surviving members of the legendary 80’s hip-hop group RUN-DMC has filed suit against online retailers Amazon.com, Jet.com,Walmart and others for trademark infringement.

According to the lawsuit “The products sold by the Defendants confuse the public as to the source of the products and suggests that RUN-DMC endorses the products. The Defendants are trading on the goodwill of RUN-DMC.”

This and similar lawsuits highlights the problems that arise when online retailers allow third parties to sell products through their websites. Amazon.com recently filed a lawsuit in Washington state court to shut down the sale of counterfeit items on its site.

The scourge of counterfeit products has impacted many tech companies including Apple computer. In October Apple filed a lawsuit in Northern California claiming that nearly 90 percent of supposedly  genuine Apple products being sold on Amazon.com by a third party were fake. 

Ebay, the largest online marketplace, is also having its problems with counterfeit products. 24/7Wallstreet.com reported recently that 500,000 counterfeit products were sold to eBay customers.

Run-DMC’s lawsuit claims  the issue goes beyond third party sellers. The suit accuses Amazon.com of selling and marketing some of the fake Run-DMC items itself in addition to fulfilling orders made to its partners.

According to the complaint fake RUN-DMC products include shirts, patches, wallets, hats and glasses. “The Defendants have earned substantial revenue due to their unlawful use of Plaintiff’s trademark,” the complaint reads.

RUN-DMC was made up of Joseph Simmons, Darryl McDaniels, and Jason Mizell from Hollis, Queens New York. Mizell, also known as “Jam Master Jay,” was killed in 2002. His murder remains unsolved.

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About The Author

Tom Huskerson Bio Born in Richmond Virginia Tom Huskerson is a military veteran who settled in California after his discharge. Tom attended Santa Barbara City College where he began his writing career as a campus reporter. He worked as an intern news reporter for the Santa Barbara News-Press writing feature stories before moving on to San Francisco. At San Francisco State University Tom studied broadcast communications and began to focus on the Internet. He completed his graduate thesis on Internet advertising. Tom was the first student to ever focus on the Internet as a graduate student at San Francisco State University. After graduation he went to work for Zona Research in California’s Silicone Valley. As a research associate Tom supported senior analyst writing on the latest developments in the Internet industry. During the dot com boom Tom worked for several web businesses as a market researcher and analyst. As a writer and researcher Tom has authored various technical works including a training program for Charles Schwab security. Other projects included professional presentations on workplace violence and hiring security contractors. Tom has also written both fiction and non-fiction works and blogging for a travel website. He has published two books of short stories and completed two novels. Tom is the owner of Scribe of Life Literature and EbonyCandle.com. Tom is not the chief editor for the OnTechStreet. com. A news and information blog that focuses on tech news for African-Americans. The blog is the result of his desire to inform the African American community of the dangers and benefits of the cyber age. In his blog Tom reports on information security, new and analysis, scams and hoaxes, legal happenings and various topics that arise from the age of information. Tom believes that technology is a necessary tool for black people and they should know what is happening. Tom writes believing that techno speak is for the professional and that valuable information can be communicated using plain language. As a result he has embraced the motto, Less Tech, More Knowledge.

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