Facebook has recently launched a volley of trademark infringement and unfair competition lawsuits against smaller sites that it accuses of copying or infringing upon its name, style, and functionality. Among the sites that have been on the receiving end of lawsuits from the 500 million member-strong social networking giant: Lamebook, a clearly-labeled parody site that reproduces funny and embarrassing Facebook content, Faceporn (the name says it all), and Teachbook, an online resource for teachers.
In the case of Faceporn, there’s a decent argument for trademark infringement. Lamebook might be satirical, but, to be fair, it does specifically copy the look of Facebook. But with Teachbook, the site neither looks like nor attempts to replicate Facebook. In the words of its creator, Teachbook is “a teacher’s community where users can share lesson plans and seek advice from fellow educators.”
All the same, Facebook’s lawyers hold to their claim that the use of the suffix “book,” and the fact that teachers can network on the site, gives Facebook the right to pursue both trademark infringement and unfair competition lawsuits.
If Facebook has no problem taking legal action against a tiny site for educators based on the fact that the site slightly resembles Facebook in name and function, I wonder why those same lawyers haven’t made a move against Muslimbook, the terrorist Facebook?
Muslimbook IS Facebook. It’s the exact same site, graphically and functionally. The creators of Muslimbook simply copied the design and text of the entire Facebook site, right down to the fact that, if you examine the Muslimbook terms of service, you see that it’s the exact same page, with “Facebook” replaced by “Muslimbook” (and, every now-and-then, the creators of Muslimbook didn’t even bother to replace the name).
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The creation of a Muslim Facebook was first announced last August (ironically, the very month that Facebook began its lawsuit frenzy) by Iran’s Ahlul Bayt News Agency (ABNA), which quoted the Muslimbook creators as saying, “The site’s close resemblance to Facebook is to ensure the migration from one (site) to the other is easy for users.”
ABNA added, “The new website is almost identical to Facebook.”
The course of events after August gets a little hazy. For a while, there were two competing sites – the US-registered Muslimbook.com, and the South Africa-registered Muslimbook.co.za (.za is the South African domain, based on the original Dutch name “Zuid Afrika”).
The US Muslimbook.com floundered after its launch, and now appears to be, if not quite dead, at least very neglected and seldom used. But by January of this year, Muslimbook.co.za had definitely found its niche – hard-core jihadists. With over 4,300 users, Muslimbook.co.za has become the place for would-be jihadists to meet, exchange information, and network.
The languages used on Muslimbook.co.za are fairly evenly split between English, Arabic, and Urdu. Like Facebook, Muslimbook.co.za allows the creation of groups, which users can “like” and join. Once a member, they can chat, leave comments, and basically do everything that can be done on Facebook. Muslimbook.co.za allows the tagging of photos, the posting of notes, status updates…you name it – if Facebook allows it, Muslimbook.co.za does too. It’s an exact replica.
Among the most popular groups on Muslimbook.co.za are:
All About Jihad. Description by the group admin: “Trying to get the Understanding Of Jihad?? There are 2 types Of Jihad – Learn about them. Feature news from Afghanistan, Palestine, Somalia, Yemen and all other Muslim lands.”
Future Mujahideen Group: “This group is so that all brothers who have determination to become mujahid and migrate to jihad land particularly in Pakistan and Afghanistan can meet here and discuss things, make plans, work closely as a group. InshaAllah.
In a discussion between group members, a member named Ziyaad asks, “You think we can kick some life into Muslimbook and use it as a driving force to spark for our fellow brothers and sisters and ignite the spirit of Jihad?”
Another user sees Muslimbook.co.za as the perfect tool to make “personal contacts” with “future Mujahideen” – contacts that can then be followed up in person to avoid being “dooped” by law enforcement.
Mujahideen Night: “A Pious brother has suggested that we make every Friday night ‘Mujahideen Night.’ On this night, we should take out as much time as possible, and dedicate it to making Dua for our beloved Mujahideen all over the world. May Allah Ta’ala makes them victorious and save them from the tortures of the disbelievers.” The page features interviews with Taliban commanders.
Toward Khilafah: “Anyone who believes that democracy is a farce and understands that the only way any success in terms of “land affairs” can ever be achieved is by re-instatement of Khilafah (Caliphate)…Allah make it easy.”
Ya’Hamas: “Followers and Supporters of Hamas and jihad please join!”
Islam is Not All About Peace: “People are saying that Islam is all about peace when it is not. People are saying Jihad is wrong when THEY are actually wrong. Fight in the name of Allah.”
One group offers up-to-the-minute email reports about Taliban victories and U.S. casualties in Afghanistan:
“4 American invaders killed in Wardag Sept. 01 – At least four US cowardly soldiers were killed on Wednesday when a roadside bomb detonated under their tanks and ripped it into pieces in Wardag.” Reported by Zabihullah
One of the most common themes on Muslimbook is “jihad,” so much so that if you Google the number of times that word is mentioned on the site, you get over 13,000 results.
Many, perhaps most, users list “jihad” among their interests. Martyrdom is another oft-used term on the site.
One example: This is the “my interests” section of a 21-year-old female Muslimbook member from Bahrain:
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I’m against Anything or Anyone that is against Islam I AM ANTI-KUFAAR I AM ANTI-DEMOCRACY I AM ANTI-NATIONALISM I AM ANTI-JEWS I AM ANTI-ZIONISM I AM- ANTI HOMOSEXUALITY I AM ANTI-HYPOCRITES I AM ANTI-FAKE PEACEMAKERS I Support: PRO-JIHAD PRO-ISLAM PRO-BURQA PRO-KHILAFAH PRO-MUJAHIDEEN PRO-SHARIAH LAW PRO-NIQAB PRO-REAL PEACE PRO-ISLAMIC TAKEOVER PRO-HIJAB ♥I want to die with my forehead on the ground, The Sunnah in my heart, Allah on my mind.Some notes posted on Muslimbook by users:
“Why do we hate the Jews? The only way to defeat the Jews is jihad for the sake of Allah. There is a great demand for this duty, which is the pinnacle of Islam, to be carried out….We ask Allah to save the weak and oppressed believers and to humiliate the Jews and polytheists and grant victory to the people of Tawheed. May He expel the Jews from Bayt Al-Maqdis (Jerusalem), humiliated and defeated.”
“Solution? Only Jihad: In times like these, when Muslim lands are occupied by the kuffar, when the jails of tyrants are full of Muslim POWs, when the rule of the law of Allah is absent from this world and when Islam is being attacked in order to uproot it, Jihad becomes obligatory on every Muslim. Jihad must be practiced by the child even if the parents refuse, by the wife even if the husband objects and by the one indebt even if the lender disagrees.”
“Your Just Reward: When you see an opportunity, take it and lift your sword and go forth in Allah’s name and knowing that He is on the side of the Believers. And do not go half way, or a third of the way or even all except a tenth of the way, make it all the way to the end and don’t give up your fight, Allah has already decreed the time of your death and no-one and nothing can bring it any closer or delay it for even a second. This is not radical. This is not extreme. This is faith in Allah azza Wajjal and his word. This is an act of bravery. This is what one Muslim does to defend the honour of another Muslim. This how we protect the sanctity of another Muslim’s life. This is how we celebrate the Shahaada, by defending it! ALLAHU AKBAR! ALLAHU AKBAR! ALLAHU AKBAR.”
Perhaps most chilling of all is the profile of a 35-year-old Pakistani man, currently living in Atlanta. His profile picture shows him aiming a G3 assault rifle, and the two photos in his gallery are titled “G3 and me” and “flight plan.”
Because it’s based in South Africa, Muslimbook.co.za is subject to the international copyright and intellectual property treaties to which South Africa is a signatory. And South African law itself protects the rights of trademark holders, even if they are based outside the country:
“A foreign-owned trade mark which is well-known in South Africa is protected even in the absence of registration or goodwill in this country. In the McDonald’s case the court held that ‘well-known’ meant that the trade mark must be known to a substantial number of persons who are interested in the goods or services provided under the trade mark – it need not be known in every nook and cranny across the country.”
So, should Facebook decide to pursue Muslimbook.co.za for trademark infringement, it has three paths through which to do so – international law, South African law, and the rules of the company in charge of administering .co.za domains.
Seems rather easy, especially for an entity as powerful as Facebook.
Muslimbook.co.za is registered to a company called GoldNet Hosting, in Port Elizabeth. The registrant is one Mark Lodge, who also runs a company called Golden Creations.
And that’s pretty much all that the folks at Facebook would need to know in order to pursue legal action against Muslimbook.co.za.
But will they? Facebook had no problem bullying a networking site for teachers. Facebook’s lawyers even added an “unfair competition” claim to go along with the trademark infringement action, even though Teachbook had, at the time, a paltry 47 members (that’s competition to Facebook?). Muslimbook.co.za has over 4,300 members. And it’s a direct copy of Facebook – a full-on bootleg, a cut-and-paste of Facebook’s style, text, and functionality.
Will Facebook treat Muslimbook as it did Teachbook, Lamebook, and Pornbook?
Or will the jihadists get a free pass to rip off the largest and most powerful social networking site on the Internet?
For the record, Facebook steadfastly refused two weeks’ worth of requests for comment. CounterContempt was first directed to the department that handles claims of trademark infringement, and then to the legal department, and finally to the department that deals with press inquiries.
No one, from any of those departments, saw fit to respond.