Subj: Moby Grape
Date: 2/10/99 2:10:15 PM Pacific Standard Time
From: SFSound Co
To: ben@mobygrape.com
Ben:
My intent is not to be nasty with you. But I will vigorously defend myself when my good name is under attack by people who
have never met me.
While you allude to the fact that you send customers my way, the type of content that was on your site does many times
more damage to me and my business than any benefit you have conveyed. For legal reasons, I cannot allow you to continue
to use the name Moby Grape at your discretion. Doing so would jeopardize my exclusive right to the name.
Within the month, the San Francisco Sound web site, "sfsound.com", will be online. Rather than have the site cover only
SFS titles,the goal of the site is to make it the place for fans to go for everything related to the spirit of the love generation
and the bands that created the music scene in San Francisco in the 60's. Rather than focus on the negativty that dominates
society today, our site will promote positive energy true to the spirit of the love generation.
You seem to be a genuine person. If we are able to continue a positive relationship, I would consider granting a license to you
to operate the Moby Grape website. Naturally, we could link the sites to increase mutual interest and traffic from the fans. I
could also forward thousands of names to you that come from the bushels of fan mail that I receive regarding San Francisco
Sound and Moby Grape.
Please notify me how you intend to proceed. If we cannot work together, I am forced to include you in my action for
infringement of the name (Katz v. Lewis, SF Superior Court). If you have any doubts, please consult an attorney. You now
stand as a willful infringer, liable for punitive damages. I hope that we are able to come to a reasonable solution.
Matthew Katz
Monday, February 08, 1999 America Online: SFSound Co Page: 1