List company Worldata is considering legal action against a firm in Panama that calls itself World Data Corp., including a possible trademark infringement suit.
The firm billing itself as World Data Corp. sent an e-mail blast last month promoting its targeted e-mail list.
Boca Raton, FL-based Worldata, which manages and brokers e-mail and postal files, contacted its attorney.
“When people see this, they'll think it's us,” says Jay Schwedelson, Worldata's corporate vice president. “This is an absolute infringement on our federal registration.”
Worldata's lawyer Jerome L. Wolf says that his firm, Berger Singerman, has been unable to locate the Panamanian outfit. An 800 number in the e-mail is answered by a recorded message. No Web site can be found.
Wolf says that if he's able to reach World Data Corp., a phone call may stop the company from operating under that name, but “[Worldata] will take whatever action is necessary.” That might include a trademark infringement suit, he adds.
Another complication is that Panama is not subject to U.S. laws.
“It's like chasing any of these offshore companies that send spam into the United States — there's not a lot that can be done,” Schwedelson says.
Worldata won a trademark suit against World Data Network in May.
“We set a precedent that whether it's one word or two, with one ‘d’ or two, it's in violation of our registration,” Schwedelson says.
