Uffizi wins online-touting legal battle

(ANSA) - Rome, February 6 - The Uffizi Gallery said Thursday that it has won a legal battle in the United States against a firm that set up websites to sell tickets to the Florence museum at inflated prices. The District Court of Arizona ruled that BoxNic Anstalt had committed 'cybersquatting' over its use of the Uffizi trademark and ordered it to stop using the uffizi.com, uffizi.net, uffizigallery.com, and uffizigallery.net domain names.
    The museum said the ruling was a "historical judicial victory against online ticket touting". "It's not just a victory for the Uffizi, for the culture ministry and the world of culture, it is also a victory for honest citizens," said Uffizi Director Eike Schmidt.
    "We have landed a devastating blow against the vampires of the Web who have illegally, and in bad faith, exploited our heritage and our image for years like parasites.
    "These pirate sites deceived visitors from all over the world.