OK, I think this falls under trademark discussion. If I have a website, let's call it pepsilovers.com, can I produce items with that domain name on it without stepping into a legal mess with Pepsi? Or do I have to actually license the name from them?

The key to trademark law is "likelihood of confusion." I constantly read statements on AnswerBag saying that you need permission to use the trademarked name of a company (or person). This is simply not true. I think the confusion comes from people confusing copyright and trademark law. Copyright law gives a person a monopoly on their work, and you would need permission to use a copyrighted work. Trademark law, on the other hand, deals with the origin of a product or service. The trademark owner does not have a monopoly on the name, but they do have the right to prevent people using the name in a manner that would confuse people about the origin of a product. To answer your question there are actually two seperate issues: 1) cybersquatting, and 2) trademark. Cybersquatting is where a person buys a web address to either sell it to the company that owns the trademark, or to freeride on the good will of a companies name. For example, if I bought RolexWatchCo.com and sold my own line of watches on the site, then the Rolex company could sue me for cybersquating. The same is true if I bought the site ILoveRolex.com or IHateRolex.com. On the other hand, if I bought the above sites and used them to protest the Rolex company for some business practice, or to praise them for their great watches, then I am not cybersquatting. The point is that I must have a legitimate purpose for the name. So your pepsilovers.com site, on its own, could be a violation if you don't use it for a legitimate purpose. If you are actually going to use it as a Pepsi Fan Site, then your fine. So what about using the PepsiLovers.com name on other products? Here it is fine as long as their is not a likelihood of confusion as to the origins of the product. If people who receive your items think that the items are actually being made by Pepsi, then you are violating a trademark. You can protect against this by including a disclaimer that "PepsiLovers.com is not owned or affiliated by Pepsi Bottling Corp (or whatever their legal name is)." Now for the practical answer. If Pepsi believes your website/items are hurting business, they will send you a cease and desist letter. If you fail to cease and desist, they will sue you. In the end you will win, but it will be a puric victory. In other words, the cost of winning would be huge (i.e. lawyers and litigation are not cheap).

Upfront, the name you have chosen is already a trademark and copyright infringement. Before i made any move, i would contact Pepsi. their attorneys will quickly respond to any of your questions. There was a car used car lot, call The Price Is Right. the owner was quickly advised he could not use this name, at all. you can imagine why. Make the calls and do it the legal way. if not, you could find yourself in the middle of a big civil lawsuit.