Unlike the use of a simple word link, a consumer is more likely to be confused into believing that the linked site is associated with or endorses the site that owns the graphical trademark. An X-rated website used the Playboy name and bunny logo to link to the Playboy website. Playboy sued and proved that users of the site may be confused as to whether Playboy sponsored or endorsed the adult site. Playboy also proved that its trademarks would be blurred or tarnished by the association with the adult site. In addition to these legal theories, other legal attacks on linking practices have been based upon false advertising, unfair competition, breach of contract and disparagement.
False advertising occurs when a misleading statement about a product or service deceives the public.
Unfair competition refers to a group of a state and federal laws that prohibit unethical behavior by businesses. A breach of contract may occur if users agree to contractual limitations when using a website, and then create links in violation of those terms. Disparagement occurs when a link creates a false statement that interferes with a company's business relations. Deep Linking As discussed earlier, deep linking allows visitors to bypass information and advertisements at the home page and go directly to an internal page. As a result, sites can lose income because their revenues are often tied to the number of viewers who pass through their home page.