Ann Arbor VC Firm, EDF Ventures Sends Subpoena To Find Out Negative Anonymous User On The Funded

EDF Ventures is a VC firm based in Ann Arbor, MI.  TheFunded.com is a startup company that allows startup founders to leave reviews on VCs that they have dealt with in the past.  And EDF Ventures has several negative reviews.  One particular comment left on TheFunded.com states that EDF is “to be avoided unless you are desperate.”  Now EDF has sent a subpoena to TheFunded.com to find out who that commenter is.

TheFunded.com may have a hard time figuring out who that commenter is because the company does not store IP addresses, e-mail addresses, or other personal information. 

This isn’t the first time that a company has taken legal action against TheFunded.  A debt firm called Hercules tried using the Communications Decency Act against the company, but TheFunded stated that they are not liable for comments made by third parties.  Hercules then dropped the lawsuit.

Websites where users can leave anonymous comments about companies and teachers have been existing for years.  RateMyProfessors.com is an example of where anonymous comments can be made about university professors.  I haven’t heard about any cases where these teachers try to subpoena commenters on RateMyProfessor.  And the comments left on that site are much more offensive.  EDF’s actions are quite rare.

Below is a copy of the subpoena that I found via VentureBeat:

Related Links:
1. EDF Ventures
2. TheFunded.com

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