YouTube named in suit by firm in Perrysburg

11/1/2006

Universal Tube & Rollform Equipment Corp., of Perrysburg, has sued YouTube Inc., a California Internet firm known for its popular video site on the Web, for damages.

The suit, filed this week in U.S. District Court in Toledo, contends that confusion over the youtube.com Web name and the local firm's utube.com disrupted the local firm's business of selling pipe-making machinery globally.

The suburban Toledo company asked for an injunction against the California firm's use of its Web address and is seeking unspecified financial damages.

Ralph Girkins, owner of Universal Tube, said yesterday the action could be characterized as a "multimillion-dollar" suit.

The suit alleges that Mr. Girkins' firm's Web traffic went from 1,500 to more than 2 million hits a month because of visitors looking for "lewd and other disgusting video."

Last month, YouTube announced it is being bought by Internet giant Google Inc. for nearly $1.7 billion.