Complain about a product or service

EFF Files Suit to Protect Journalist From Drug Company Intimidation

June 29, 2005
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has filed a lawsuit against French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi-Aventis Group on behalf of Medical Week News, publishers of the medical news website AcompliaReport.com.

Acomplia • EFF Files Suit to Protect Journalist From Drug Company Intimidation • Interest Builds in New Weight Loss Drug, Acomplia • Sanofi-Aventis Tries to Muzzle Web Newsletter

EFF's lawsuit comes after Sanofi-Aventis, the world's third largest pharmaceutical company, threatened Medical Week News with legal action based on its use of the word "Acomplia" in its AcompliaReport.com website domain name.

Acomplia is the name of a Sanofi-Aventis drug intended to combat obesity and assist with smoking cessation that has shown promise in clinical trials in the United States and in Europe, and has just been submitted to the US FDA and European regulators for approval.

AccompliaReport.com is an independent online newsletter devoted to reporting news about the drug.

1st Amendment • California Consumer Advocate Slams Brown Over Taping of Phone Calls • California Consumer Group Wants Its Billboard Back • Cash4Gold Sues Consumerist.com Over Investigation • Internet Publishers Caution Congress • Craigslist CEO Sues South Carolina Attorney General • Craigslist CEO, South Carolina AG Trade Potshots Over Erotic Ads • Craigslist Shuts Down "Erotic Services" Ads • States Turn Up Heat on Craigslist Sex Postings • Doctors Gagging Patients • States Strong-Arm Craigslist to Squelch Prostitutes' Ads • Is Old Media a Thing Of the Past? • Lawyer’s Threats, Intimidation Shut Down Web Site • Nemet Chevrolet Plans Appeal in Consumer Site Suit • Maryland Developer Seeks Names of Web Complainants • Craiglist Bites Back, Answers Connecticut AG • Connecticut Wants Craiglist to Pull Prostitution Ads • Craiglist Cleared in Biased-Postings Suit • Ionic Breeze Suit Drives Sharper Image into Bankruptcy • Video Professor Drops Subpoena, Goes After Wikipedia Users • Court Ruling Protects Anonymous Bloggers • AT&T Changes Terms Of Service After Outcry • AT&T Stiffens Language Covering Objectionable Content • Blogger, Journalist, Citizen: Which is Which? • Consumers Revolt Against High-Priced Media • Senate Press Gallery Ejects Consumer Journalist • Report Calls for More 'Transparency' in Congress • Builders, Contractors Hammer Consumer Sites • New York Upholds Consumers' Right to Criticize • Judge Lifts Injunction Against Video Game • Florida Dentists Drop Efforts to Silence Critical Web Site • EFF Files Suit to Protect Journalist From Drug Company Intimidation • Sharper Image Loses First Amendment Case Against Consumers Union • Life Alert Drops 2 of 3 Claims Against ConsumerAffairs.com

In the lawsuit, filed in US District Court in San Francisco, Medical Week News asserts its fair use right to use the word "Acomplia" in publishing independent news about the drug.

"Reporters, critics, and commentators all need to use trademarks in order to discuss and report on trademarked products and services," said EFF Senior Staff Attorney Fred von Lohmann. "Trademark law has always recognized that as a fair use when books and magazines do it. Publishers should enjoy the same fair use rights on the World Wide Web."

"People find information on the Web by entering the subject that is of interest to them in search engines," said Milton R. Benjamin, Publisher and President of Medical Week News. "People hear the word Acomplia on television and go to the Internet for more information. If we were unable to use the name Acomplia in our website, tens of thousands of people never would find the most comprehensive source of objective news and information about development of this drug."

Mr. Benjamin is a veteran journalist who has served in senior editorial positions at Newsweek and the Washington Post.

The lawsuit asks the court to declare that Medical Week News is entitled to continue to use the word "Acomplia" in the AcompliaReport.com domain name and website.

Report Your Experience
If you've had a bad experience -- or a good one -- with a consumer product or service, we'd like to hear about it. All complaints are reviewed by class action attorneys and are considered for publication on our site. Knowledge is power! Help spread the word. File your consumer report now.

Share		Follow us on Twitter.

Back to the top |