Google threatens SA man
2012-11-14 12:44
Johannesburg - Internet giant Google is threatening to sue a young entrepreneur from Middelburg in Mpumalanga because his website has a similar name, Beeld reported on Wednesday.
Andries Maree, 23, owns domain name Doogle.co.za, a website that allows employment seekers to upload their particulars free of charge.
Maree, who left school in Grade 8 to help support his family, lost his job two years ago. He sold newspapers for Beeld for a while, during which time he met a lot of unemployed people, and became inspired to create a database for them.
He taught himself software and programming skills by "playing around on websites".
On 23 October, he received a warning letter from Google's lawyers, stating that the similar-sounding name could lead people to believe there was a collaboration agreement between the two companies.
Maree has denied the accusations and said he would be happy to place a notice on his website, dissociating himself from Google.
Maree's lawyer, Emmie de Kock, said they did not agree with Google, and were deciding how to proceed.
"This is a possible David and Goliath battle," she said.
- SAPA
