Six years ago, 15-year-old Sammy Wasem was such a big Ferrari fan that he decided to set up a Facebook page so that he could share his passion and enthusiasm with others. It was this same enthusiasm that helped make that page become one of the most popular of its kind on Facebook. This eventually showed up on the radar of Ferrari's marketing department, which has now become embroiled in legal proceedings against now 21-year-old Wasem over control of the page.
In March 2009 Ferrari emailed Sammy to congratulate him and his father, Olivier, for their work after the page gained more than 500,000 fans within a year, yet in the email Ferrari went on to say "unfortunately legal issues force us in taking over the formal administration of the fan page." Since then the Wasem's have been fighting to try to regain control of their Facebook page.
At the time the Wasems had agreed to make their site the official fan page for Ferrari, but the Italian-firm named their own managers and site administrators without any communication or agreement with the Wasems. Ferrari did offer the pair lifetime membership of its Scuderia Club and even supplied logos which the company said could be used. Both Olivier and his son continued to work on the page - even though they were receiving no financial compensation - for another four years before then losing their administration rights to the page. Last year the pair filed a civil lawsuit against Ferrari seeking compensation for what they claim is more than 5,500 hours of work.
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Ferrari has also sued the Wasems, claiming that they misused the supercar maker's trademarks in order to advertise non-Ferrari merchandise, which was sold through the page, as well as promoting events and sending out personal invitations for birthday parties. The case is due to be heard next month, and depending on the outcome, it could have huge implications for the world of social media and how brands use it.