Stan Lee Media in Domain Name Battle

Stan Lee Media Inc., an Internet and multimedia entertainment company founded by legendary “Spider-Man” co-creator Stan Lee, has sued San Francisco firefighter Stanley Lee in a domain name and trademark battle. Stan Lee Media, which has domain names https://www.stanleemedia.com and https://www.stanlee.net, is using the Web to present its interactive comic book and action-hero entertainment products, according to the suit. Filed May 1 in federal court in Los Angeles, the suit contends that Stanley Lee, owner of animation company Stan Lee Productions, states on a Web site (https://www.stan-lee.com) that the location is the “future site of some of the best animators on the West Coast.” The Web site and domain name infringe the Spider-Man creator’s trademarked name and are likely to confuse the public, the suit said. “Stan Lee has acquired extraordinary name recognition and celebrity status, and [the] ‘Stan Lee’ trademark is famous and has acquired very strong secondary meaning in the comic book, entertainment, animation and action-hero industries,” the suit said. It seeks damages and asks a judge to force the firefighting Lee to surrender his domain name and e-mail address.