Can I use a website to redirect to BBB?

[yourbudweiser]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? FL

I had a bad experience with a local business and tried to resolve it amicably. I e-mailed them and told them that I would report them to the BBB and would file testimonials on multiple sites regarding their business practices but that didn't work.

Before the bad experience the owners of the company expressed a desire to hire me to create a website for the business so I purchased a domain name (nameofcompanyinc.com).

Now I want to redirect all visitors to the website to the BBB website report for this company which shows a big F right in the middle of the page.

Can this be considered libelous or defamatory?

 

[Zigner]

The BBB has no authority what-so-ever. It is a private entity.

Your plan is a bad one in many ways. If you have a dispute, sue the bad folks. If you're just pissed about the way they do business, then don't do business with them.

 

[yourbudweiser]

Thanks for responding!

I'm just trying to save other potential customers of this business trouble. I spent a lot of money with this business already and suing is them is costly.

Is my idea actionable?

 

[quincy]

If you are asking if the local company can sue you, the answer is yes. Defending against a lawsuit can be as expensive as bringing any action yourself.

Merely providing a link to a BBB site that offers a less-than-flattering portrait of the local business would not be defamatory (unless, I suppose, it can be shown that all complaints lodged against this local business originated with you). Any text you personally provide on your website could be defamatory, including any reasons you may include as to why the link is being provided to website visitors.

Your best bet would be to continue to try to work out an amicable resolution to your problems with the company. If you feel you have exhausted all possible means of an amicable resolution, then consult with an attorney in your area to go over all of the possible legal ramifications of your website idea prior to implementing your idea.

 

[Zigner]

If you are asking if the local company can sue you, the answer is yes. Defending against a lawsuit can be as expensive as bringing any action yourself.

Merely providing a link to a BBB site that offers a less-than-flattering portrait of the local business would not be defamatory (unless, I suppose, it can be shown that all complaints lodged against this local business originated with you). Any text you personally provide on your website could be defamatory, including any reasons you may include as to why the link is being provided to website visitors.

Your best bet would be to continue to try to work out an amicable resolution to your problems with the company. If you feel you have exhausted all possible means of an amicable resolution, then consult with an attorney in your area to go over all of the possible legal ramifications of your website idea prior to implementing your idea.

One other aspect is the improper linking to the BBB site - the BBB might take exception to it.

 

[quincy]

The BBB is a registered trademark, as are the many and assorted variations of BBB. And it is true that the BBB has sent letters to websites in the past, informing them that they should remove their unauthorized links to the BBB sites.

However, although a link to the BBB could potentially lead to a trademark infringement action, simple hyperlinks are rarely illegal and, to my knowledge, the BBB has never tried to pursue an infringement action against any of the websites that have merely posted links to their sites. Illegality, and a legitimate infringement action, could arise if the website's BBB link led to consumer confusion over the website's affiliation with the BBB, or led to confusion over whether the BBB sponsored the website in any way.

Prior written consent obtained by the website from the BBB, to link to a BBB site, would certainly avoid any letter sent by the BBB to the website, requesting the link's removal, but whether this is entirely legally necessary is a definite question mark. Yourbudweiser could add a disclaimer, saying that his website is in no way affiliated with or sponsored by the BBB, but this may not prevent the BBB from sending a warning letter to yourbudweiser anyway. Posting just the URL, and avoiding a link altogether, is perhaps the easiest route to take.

A more likely problem would come from the use of "nameofcompanyinc.com" for the website that displays the BBB link. This could create a legal headache for yourbudweiser, not from the BBB but from the local company.

Yourbudweiser's best course of action is to review his ENTIRE website idea, including the linking to the BBB site and the use of the "company name" domain name, with an attorney in his area. I suspect any attorney will try to discourage yourbudweiser from proceeding with his proposed plan.

 

[The Occultist]

To clarify a point, I don't think the OP intends to display any links to the BBB, rather, it sounds like anybody that tries to access that website is automatically redirected to the BBB page so there is no actual link (except, I suppose, there might be one of those "If not redirected in 5 seconds click here" type links).

 

[yourbudweiser]

Great responses, thank you all.

Quincy zeroed in on my main concern with his reply about using nameofcompanyinc.com.

The Occultist also correctly stated that the site automatically redirects to the BBB report without providing a link. There is no content at all on the page. The redirect is done through the web host.

I emailed them and tried to work it out but they told me they have no intention of addressing my problem.

Would it matter if my email stated that I would post testimonials of my experience unless they settled the matter?

 

[HomeGuru]

Great responses, thank you all.

Quincy zeroed in on my main concern with his reply about using nameofcompanyinc.com.

The Occultist also correctly stated that the site automatically redirects to the BBB report without providing a link. There is no content at all on the page. The redirect is done through the web host.

I emailed them and tried to work it out but they told me they have no intention of addressing my problem.

Would it matter if my email stated that I would post testimonials of my experience unless they settled the matter?

**A: you can certainly post whatever you on your own website. Just make sure you post facts that can be proven in the court of law.

 

[quincy]

Thanks for the clarification on the type of linking.

The Occulist, Zigner, HomeGuru, or others, probably know more about this than I, but the linking you seem to want to do is not hyperlinking (which has been found by courts to be legal under most circumstances) but rather you want to "deep" link, which will totally bypass your website homepage and go directly to the BBB site.

Deep linking creates more possibilities for a lawsuit. The Court said, in Ticketmaster Corp v Tickets.com, that deep linking is not copyright infringement, but deep linking could be a trademark infringement and, in some cases, unfair business practices. Suits have been filed, by National Public Radio and others, against websites who deep link.

And, win or lose, lawsuits are always expensive. Using a hyperlink or using a URL on your website is definitely legally safer than deep linking.

With the purchase of nameofcompanyinc.com, as you said was done in anticipation of a website creation for the company, legal issues could arise with the local company if you had an agreement (verbal or written) with the company over the purchase of this domain name. Is the domain name registered to you, yourbudweiser? Was it registered AFTER your falling-out with the company, or before? What agreement did you have with the company about the domain name and the website?

Even if the local company has a federally registered trademark on its name, you could still have the right to the nameofcompanyinc.com domain name, depending on any agreement you made with the local company. BUT, the use of nameofcompanyinc.com could violate the local company's trademark rights if it leads to consumer confusion (which, in turn, could lead to the termination of your use of the domain name). And if the purchase of a domain name can be shown to have been in "bad faith" (the purpose of which was to sell the name or use it in a nefarious way) the domain name can be taken away from you under federal law.

One final potential problem with your nameofcompanyinc.com could come from dilution of the company's trademark through your use. If your use tarnishes the reputation of the company or you use it purposely to trade off the name of the company, the company could stop your use of their name. Most dilution actions are brought under federal law (although it can be possible to sue under state statute, as well).

Telling the truth about a company, as HomeGuru said, is perfectly legal, as long as you can support this truth through evidence. Expressing opinions about this company is legal, as long as you stick to opinion that does not imply any false fact. Using deep links and company name domain names can also be legal, under many circumstances.

But, the local company can sue you anyway, as could, potentially, the BBB.

All in all, yourbudweiser, I am thinking that your plan to use this website to attack the local company over any real (or perceived) wrongs is a big legal risk - and you should consult with an attorney in your area to go over all of the problems you can face.

 

[magnusneptune]

Do you own the Domain Name?

If so, then it should be nothing more than a matter of html coding, in which you're at the wrong forum.

I don't think it's liberl or slander to host someone's opinion of their business.

 

[quincy]

Magnusneptune, it could possibly be libel (slander is spoken), to express an opinion of a business on a website, depending on how this opinion is expressed. And yourbudweiser is complicating this expression of his opinion by involving a company domain name and another's trademarked business name (the Better Business Bureau).

Html coding would not prevent a lawsuit from being filed against yourbudweiser, in other words.

Yourbudweiser's best course of action is to consult with an attorney in his area, to review the legal ramifications of his proposed website plan.