12 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}
12 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}

What's the deal with fan sites?

by Andrew Stevens
10 replies
I'm thinking about building a couple fan sites and I have a few questions.

I see that there are fan sites for everyone from sports stars, celebrities, politicians, writers, etc.

Here are my questions:

1. Alot of these fan sites use the Name of the individual right in the domain like

NameOfPersonOfficialFanSite.com

Is it legally okay to use the name of famous people in your domain? I know you can't use company names such as ebay in your domain name, but I see thousands of fan sites with celebrity names in the domains that seems to be operating smoothly and have been around a long time.


2. I see that most of the fan sites use pictures of the celebrities in the header artwork. I would assume this was not okay, but it seems to be widespread. Does anyone have any clues about this? It's pretty hard to build a fan site about someone without using their pictures.
#deal #fan #sites
  • Profile picture of the author Andrew Stevens
    Does anybody have any experience with fan sites or niche sites based on celebrities of any kind?
    Signature
    Wholesale Sneakers - Wholesale Retro Jordans - Wholesale Yeezys
    -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1802458].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author JeffMitchell
      I would keep it the "Unofficial Fan Site" of Name, people like fan sites, but really I don't know about having the official.

      Here is a cool thought. I you are looking to fan sites and can put up websites quicky and don't mind buying a bunch of domains. Watch some of the reality shows...i.e America Idol, AMerica's got Talent. ANd buy up all the domain names for the top 24 or 30 and when the top people rise to fame...you'll own the .com of their name and they will have to buy it.

      I know that is not really what you asked, but I think it would be a cool thing for what you are doing.

      Jeff Mitchell
      Signature

      HELP NEEDED! My Mother And Her Brother have been taking care of the mother with the help of Hospice. He just had a Massive Heart Attack while taking a short vacation. My mother had to go to Florida from Indiana to be with her brother and is not financially stable from being off work to be with grandma. Any Help Would Be Appreciated. http://www.gofundme.com/vg5kt4c

      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1802499].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Andrew Stevens
        Thanks for the idea. That's pretty good.


        Originally Posted by JeffMitchell View Post

        I would keep it the "Unofficial Fan Site" of Name, people like fan sites, but really I don't know about having the official.

        Here is a cool thought. I you are looking to fan sites and can put up websites quicky and don't mind buying a bunch of domains. Watch some of the reality shows...i.e America Idol, AMerica's got Talent. ANd buy up all the domain names for the top 24 or 30 and when the top people rise to fame...you'll own the .com of their name and they will have to buy it.

        I know that is not really what you asked, but I think it would be a cool thing for what you are doing.

        Jeff Mitchell
        Signature
        Wholesale Sneakers - Wholesale Retro Jordans - Wholesale Yeezys
        -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1802868].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author Black Hat Cat
        Banned
        Originally Posted by JeffMitchell View Post


        Here is a cool thought. I you are looking to fan sites and can put up websites quicky and don't mind buying a bunch of domains. Watch some of the reality shows...i.e America Idol, AMerica's got Talent. ANd buy up all the domain names for the top 24 or 30 and when the top people rise to fame...you'll own the .com of their name and they will have to buy it.

        Jeff Mitchell
        Good luck with that.
        Cybersquatting, Domain Law Resource - Celebrity Domain Names And Personal Name Domains
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1803434].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author NK
    Definitely keep the "unofficial" in your site title but not necessary in your domain. Based on experience, the worse that could happen is they would send you an email asking you to remove images from your site.

    I would avoid using the person's name if possible. Maybe use a song, a lyric line, a catch phrase - something else that fans could identify with the person instead.
    Signature

    Affiliate Link Cloaking & Tracking Software - The most powerful tool available for affiliate marketers who are sick and tired of making way too little money!
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1802912].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Mark Blaze
    I keep getting stuck with the 'that word/phrase is blocked' when i try and create a fan page! Yet there are other fan pages using very similar or the same exact words.... any help?

    Mark Blaze
    Signature
    Aweber BONUS! <- Email Marketing At It's Best!
    The Best Spinner BONUS!<- Article Spinning Made 110% Easier!
    Unique Article Wizard BONUS! <- 2000+ Backlinks + Traffic With Each Article!
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1802918].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author GSX Enterprises
    I don't think you'll get in too much trouble, honestly the most that could happen is you would receive a cease and desist but it all boils down to what you have on the site, obviously a site defaming a person will be more likely to be targeted. Nevertheless, I know some companies won't allow you to use their name in your domain url, and some will, just varies.

    I would give it a shot, especially if you have a great idea, you don't have much too loose if they ask you to take it down!

    -Safe Travels
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1803400].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Andrew Stevens
      Originally Posted by GSX Enterprises View Post

      I don't think you'll get in too much trouble, honestly the most that could happen is you would receive a cease and desist but it all boils down to what you have on the site, obviously a site defaming a person will be more likely to be targeted. Nevertheless, I know some companies won't allow you to use their name in your domain url, and some will, just varies.

      I would give it a shot, especially if you have a great idea, you don't have much too loose if they ask you to take it down!

      -Safe Travels
      Thanks for your input.

      I know the worst thing that would probably happen is getting an email threat saying take your site down. I just didn't want to take the time to build the sites if I was going to have to take them down.

      I figured someone in here may have had some personal experience with fan sites.
      Signature
      Wholesale Sneakers - Wholesale Retro Jordans - Wholesale Yeezys
      -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1803404].message }}

Trending Topics