A little-known Swiss art group operating under
the "www.etoy.com" Web address emerged victorious this afternoon
after settling a bitter dispute with leading online toy retailer
eToys.
As part of the settlement, eToys will pay up to $40,000 in legal
fees and other expenses the art group incurred during the five-month
dispute.
The toy retailer also took steps to remove the block on the etoy
domain name, which had been temporarily shut down in a court order.
Both organizations agreed to drop lawsuits filed against one
another.
"eToys doesn't get anything
from
this episode but a black eye," etoy attorney Chris Truax said this
afternoon, soon after the settlement was reached.
A spokesman for the online toy company declined to comment
extensively about the latest developments but confirmed conditions
of the settlement, saying that it was "about closure."
The case got wide attention, as many Internet users rallied
behind etoy.
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"There is no question that this
case has been a watershed; the online community organized itself,
and support spontaneously sprang into existence," said Truax, who
works out of San Diego. "This is a great victory for the Internet
community."
In a previous
interview, eToys acknowledged that overwhelming support for the
artist group prompted the online toy store to end its attack on
etoy.
Some supporters staged cyberspace sit-ins and clogged chat rooms
to rally more protesters. Leading the charge was John Perry Barlow,
former Grateful Dead lyricist and co-founder of the Electronic
Frontier Foundation, a consumer rights organization.
Truax believes the success of these efforts may have bolstered
online protesters to take up other causes.
"When you get a few thousand people online who really believe in
something, they're a potent force," Truax said.
Trouble began last year when eToys reported it had been receiving
angry complaints from parents and children who had mistakenly landed
at etoy's Web site.
The Zurich-based art group occasionally posts on its site graphic
language and nude images, which eToys considered inappropriate for
children.
In an effort to settle the domain name confusion, eToys offered
to pay between $400,000 and $1 million for the etoy Internet
address. The offers were rejected.
Talks broke down in September, when eToys filed a trademark
infringement lawsuit. Etoy countersued. A judge later issued a
preliminary injunction against the art group, forcing it to shut
down its site.
Late last month, eToys offered to settle the matter altogether
but suggested that the art group not post graphic language or nudity
on its site. Truax balked at the suggestion.
The settlement efforts had fizzled until today.
