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Butterscotch

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Prince sueing fansites devoted to him

I can't believe ANY star would treat his devoted fans this way! Doesn't he know the people on those sites are his best fans? I hope this never happens with U2. It would be the end of PLEBA that's for sure.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071107/en_nm/prince_fans_dc

Prince moves to sue fan Web sites

By Mike Collett-White Wed Nov 7, 1:50 PM ET

LONDON (Reuters) - Fan sites dedicated to Prince say they have been served legal notice to remove all images of the singer, his lyrics and "anything linked to Prince's likeness," and have vowed to fight what they said was censorship.


The move was a shock to many of his followers and came two months after Prince threatened to sue YouTube and other major Internet sites for unauthorized use of his music and image.

But by targeting fan sites directly, Prince risks a backlash, and the sites have vowed to unite under the banner "Prince Fans United" and take the matter to court if necessary.

"We strongly believe that such actions are in violation of ... freedom of speech and should not be allowed," said a statement from the three sites -- www.housequake.com, www.princefams.com and www.prince.org.

A company helping Prince control his image and music on the Internet said the fan sites had spun the story so that it was "incorrect and misleading."

"At no time is Prince suing his fans and this is not about freedom of speech," said John Giacobbi, managing director of Internet policing specialist Web Sheriff.

"The current issue is one between Prince's record label and three unofficial Web sites and relates to the use of Prince trademarks and photographs, many of which are Prince's copyright," he told Reuters.

In a statement released later, he added:

"These forums have taken it upon themselves to wear the crown of being the self appointed representatives of the millions of Prince fans worldwide, despite the fact that they only represent a tiny fraction of Prince's global fanbase."

FANS SEE IRONY

Some Prince fans were surprised at the artist's threat to sue, pointing out that the 49-year-old was seen as a pioneer of online music distribution. He won an Internet award last year for "reshaping the relationship between artist and fan."

"The irony is that someone who has won that award is now challenging the very ethos of the Internet," said a spokesman for Prince Fans United.

He added: "The intention of this is to drum up public support, not to damage him. The fan groups want peace, they don't want war."

The sites, now featuring an image of a hand print with "pfu" written on it, said the singer had demanded the removal of fans' photographs of Prince-inspired tattoos and vehicles displaying Prince-inspired license plates.

They urged Prince to reconsider his decision, but vowed to defend their position in court if need be.

"The law clearly provides for displaying of images of a celebrity's likeness for newsworthy events or matters which are considered to be public interest," they said.

Prince, behind hit albums "Purple Rain" and "Sign O' The Times," is known as a maverick in the music business.

He performed with the word "SLAVE" scrawled across his cheek in protest against his then record label and changed his name to an unpronounceable symbol.

Prince also gave his "Planet Earth" album away free with a British Sunday newspaper earlier this year, infuriating music retailers but winning plaudits from fans for innovation.

2007_11_07t073159_450x296_uk_prince_fans.jpg
 
I love Prince's music, but that's some big ass bullshit right there.

Control freak, much?
 
Re: Prince sueing fansites devoted to him

Butterscotch said:
The sites, now featuring an image of a hand print with "pfu" written on it, said the singer had demanded the removal of fans' photographs of Prince-inspired tattoos and vehicles displaying Prince-inspired license plates.

I particularly liked this bit. :lmao:
 
Prince moves to sue fan Web sites

I can't stop laughing when I think of this!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071107/en_nm/prince_fans_dc

LONDON (Reuters) - Fan sites dedicated to Prince say they have been served legal notice to remove all images of the singer, his lyrics and "anything linked to Prince's likeness," and have vowed to fight what they said was censorship.

The move was a shock to many of his followers and came two months after Prince threatened to sue YouTube and other major Internet sites for unauthorized use of his music and image.

But by targeting fan sites directly, Prince risks a backlash, and the sites have vowed to unite under the banner "Prince Fans United" and take the matter to court if necessary.

"We strongly believe that such actions are in violation of ... freedom of speech and should not be allowed," said a statement from the three sites -- www.housequake.com, www.princefams.com and www.prince.org.

A company helping Prince control his image and music on the Internet said the fan sites had spun the story so that it was "incorrect and misleading."

"At no time is Prince suing his fans and this is not about freedom of speech," said John Giacobbi, managing director of Internet policing specialist Web Sheriff.

"The current issue is one between Prince's record label and three unofficial Web sites and relates to the use of Prince trademarks and photographs, many of which are Prince's copyright," he told Reuters.

In a statement released later, he added:

"These forums have taken it upon themselves to wear the crown of being the self appointed representatives of the millions of Prince fans worldwide, despite the fact that they only represent a tiny fraction of Prince's global fanbase."

FANS SEE IRONY

Some Prince fans were surprised at the artist's threat to sue, pointing out that the 49-year-old was seen as a pioneer of online music distribution. He won an Internet award last year for "reshaping the relationship between artist and fan."

"The irony is that someone who has won that award is now challenging the very ethos of the Internet," said a spokesman for Prince Fans United.

He added: "The intention of this is to drum up public support, not to damage him. The fan groups want peace, they don't want war."

The sites, now featuring an image of a hand print with "pfu" written on it, said the singer had demanded the removal of fans' photographs of Prince-inspired tattoos and vehicles displaying Prince-inspired license plates.

They urged Prince to reconsider his decision, but vowed to defend their position in court if need be.

"The law clearly provides for displaying of images of a celebrity's likeness for newsworthy events or matters which are considered to be public interest," they said.

Prince, behind hit albums "Purple Rain" and "Sign O' The Times," is known as a maverick in the music business.

He performed with the word "SLAVE" scrawled across his cheek in protest against his then record label and changed his name to an unpronounceable symbol.

Prince also gave his "Planet Earth" album away free with a British Sunday newspaper earlier this year, infuriating music retailers but winning plaudits from fans for innovation
 
That's...really horrendously stupid. Talk about a slap in the face. This got him in that "Worst Persons" list on Olbermann tonight-can't say I disagree with that.

And why now? These sites and all the other stuff he wants removed have likely been around for some time, I'm assuming, so why is it suddenly becoming a concern to him now?

Angela
 
BonoVoxSupastar said:
I think Prince is so removed from reality sometimes that it really is starting to affect his art and mental health.

Now he'll sue you for using his name. Way to go. :tsk:
 
He's always been a control freak though, right?

But regardless, this is pretty wacky.

By the way, there's already a thread about this over in Bang & Clatter (in the Lemonade Stand section).
 
OK, in protest, I now have a Prince avatar. A copyrighted picture of Prince, mind you. :sexywink:

"Slave" is written on the bottom of the picture to signify his lawyers' control over our every action. Hey, writing it on his face helped him get out of Warner Bros. :wink:
 
LemonMelon said:
OK, in protest, I now have a Prince avatar. A copyrighted picture of Prince, mind you.

:tsk: Shame on you.

Now you'll have to go purify yourself in the waters of Lake Minnetonka.
 
corianderstem said:


:tsk: Shame on you.

Now you'll have to go purify yourself in the waters of Lake Minnetonka.

I am not boycotting Prince's music, nor am I bashing the man himself. I am merely speaking out against whatever man got him drunk enough to do this.
 
A mysterious stranger put a rag over his face, and he woke up the middle of Paisley Park. :yikes:

Presumably, the one who did this not only stole his clothes, but is also masquerading as Prince right now. That's how I'm rationalizing all of this.
 
BonoVoxSupastar said:


Oh, Prince quit drinking when he became a Jehovah Witness... hey maybe jehovah made him do it.

Maybe his ego made him do it. It's not a patch on Bono's, but probably still large enough to be its own physical entity. And probably taller than Prince himself, if that's saying anything...
 
BonoVoxSupastar said:


You've got to be kidding...:lmao: :lmao: :lmao:

:tsk: Prince stopped giving out autographs because he thought it promoted idol worship. He cares more about the souls of his fans than his own ego being stroked.

And what does Bono do? He hangs out in New York and count his piles of cash, courtesy of U218, the most pointless compilation in history. :down:























And yes, I am kidding. :wink:
 
BonoVoxSupastar said:

Oh, Prince quit drinking when he became a Jehovah Witness... hey maybe jehovah made him do it.

I just had an image of Prince going door to door doing the Jehovah's Witness thing.... :lmao:
 
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