With Yao Ming's focus on maybe missing the All-star game this year because of his broken knee, his fans in China are fretting over their 7-foot-5 hero's name, which again fell victim to the alarming craze of misapplying celebrities' names through product registration.

Jin, a Chinese lady, last May registered the Chinese name of Yao Ming as a domain address in a mobile network service provided by China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC).

The service allows applicants nationwide to register unique domain addresses and link them to mobile network websites. Chinese phone users wishing to access those websites need only send the domain address through text messages to the service provider in order to do so.
The domain address registration is believed to contain huge profit, considering the huge market of 455 million Chinese mobile phone users and the prospect of popular network surfing given new lease of life by 3G technologies.

Many organizations and companies in the country, including the Associated Press, have already registered their names in the service.

Jin, the lady who registered Yao's name, said she did not do it for economic reasons but to protect Yao, Thursday's China Youth Daily said.

Jin said she is willing to give up the registration in exchange for a hug and an autograph from the basketball star, the newspaper said.

"I want to keep Yao's name from being misused just like everyone else. That's why I registered his name ahead of those who want to take advantage of it," Jin was quoted as saying.

Yao's name had previously been registered as a brand for sanitary pads, triggering complaints from the public as well as from Yao's agents.

Many Chinese Internet users still accused Jin of hyping herself, according to the China Youth Daily.

Yao's agents have already registered "Yao", "Yaoming" and 'Team Yao" in the mobile network service, according to a CNNIC official.

The CNNIC official also said someone can ask CNNIC to cancel the registration if their names are "maliciously" registered by others for economic gain, to damage their reputation, or by people attempting to prevent them from enjoying their legal rights on the network.

However, the registration will stand as long as no complaints are made and the registration is used "in goodwill and not for commercial benefit".

(Xinhua News Agency January 5, 2007)