Domain name I&#39;ve been using for years trademarked by a popular large company

367

May 29, 2011 01:04 PM

[quote name='DarklyDreaming' timestamp='1306665415' post='4817042']
Curious, why didn't you register it? Lack of time? Money? The registration lady was being mean? I mean, taking on development for years without any registration seems a pretty stupid move - I don't know?

None of the companies I've worked for have ever registered their trademarks AFAIK. You can see how common this is by the abundance of ™ symbols around, which indicate an unregistered trade mark.

In fact, one company I worked for changed their practices while I was there to almost never even use the ™ symbol, in order to make it ambiguous which names/logos we would be willing to start lawsuits over.
[/quote]

I still don't see how that makes it any smarter to not have a registered trademark, but if you care to enlighten me...

"I will personally burn everything I've made to the fucking ground if I think I can catch them in the flames."
~ Gabe
"I don't mean to rush you but you are keeping two civilizations waiting!"
~ Cavil, BSG.
"If it's really important to you that other people follow your True Brace Style, it just indicates you're inexperienced. Go find something productive to do."
[size=2]~ Bregma

"Well, you're not alone.

There's a club for people like that. It's called Everybody and we meet at the bar[size=2].

"

[size=2]~

[size=1]Antheus

DarklyDreaming

367

May 29, 2011 01:08 PM

[quote name='DarklyDreaming' timestamp='1306665415' post='4817042']
Curious, why didn't you register it? Lack of time? Money? The registration lady was being mean? I mean, taking on development for years without any registration seems a pretty stupid move - I don't know? The costs aren't all that great in the scheme of even an indie game and last I checked it only takes a few hours of filling out forms and whatever else you might need to send back and forth and voila - you're done.

Personally, I'd swallow this as a "lesson learned" and move on to another name. Hardly worth launching the game only to get cease 'n' desist letter the day after over the name of all things...
Anyhow, good luck with whatever you choose to do!

Yes, lack of money more or less. I never considered it a big priority seeing as how I've hardly advertised it just yet - guess this certainly is a lesson learned! I think that Terraria only registered their trademark less than a month ago and nobody grabbed up their name, so I guess I really just got the short end of the stick.
[/quote]
Yep. I know about not considering it a priority - it's hardly what comes first to mind to any indie dev, but I've personally learned that business comes first and everything else comes later, and it wasn't a pleasant lesson at all...

Still, you were terribly unlucky in getting your name snapped by a big developer like that.

"I will personally burn everything I've made to the fucking ground if I think I can catch them in the flames."
~ Gabe
"I don't mean to rush you but you are keeping two civilizations waiting!"
~ Cavil, BSG.
"If it's really important to you that other people follow your True Brace Style, it just indicates you're inexperienced. Go find something productive to do."
[size=2]~ Bregma

"Well, you're not alone.

There's a club for people like that. It's called Everybody and we meet at the bar[size=2].

"

[size=2]~

[size=1]Antheus

Hodgman

52,717

May 29, 2011 01:12 PM

You can still sue over trademark infringement whether you've got an ® or are just using a ™ or have been using neither.

Most products use ™'s, which are unregistered. You generally only see ®'s on brands that take worldwide enforcement very seriously. On sites like EA or Ubisoft or Steam you won't likely find many registered trade-marks, at best you'll probably just find a bit of text that warns you that they are using certain things like logos as trademarks.

Actually, I'd be interested to see a game with an ® after it's name.

. 22 Racing Series .

DarklyDreaming

367

May 29, 2011 01:19 PM

You can still sue over trademark infringement whether you've got an ® or a ™ or neither.

Most products use ™'s, which are unregistered. You generally only see ®'s on brands that take worldwide enforcement very seriously. On sites like EA or Ubisoft or Steam you won't likely find many registered trade-marks, at best you'll probably just find a bit of text that warns you that they are using certain things like logos as trademarks.

Actually, I'd be interested to see a game with an ® after it's name.

Yes, that much I knew. I thought your wording implied a deeper reason not to go with a registered trademark® above a non-registered™. Anyhow, not trying to stir up anything - merely curious if there was another side to the coin

"I will personally burn everything I've made to the fucking ground if I think I can catch them in the flames."
~ Gabe
"I don't mean to rush you but you are keeping two civilizations waiting!"
~ Cavil, BSG.
"If it's really important to you that other people follow your True Brace Style, it just indicates you're inexperienced. Go find something productive to do."
[size=2]~ Bregma

"Well, you're not alone.

There's a club for people like that. It's called Everybody and we meet at the bar[size=2].

"

[size=2]~

[size=1]Antheus

Tom Sloper

17,201

May 29, 2011 01:32 PM

None of the companies I've worked for have ever registered their trademarks AFAIK. You can see how common this is by the abundance of ™ symbols around, which indicate an unregistered trade mark.

Actually, I'd be interested to see a game with an ® after it's name.

Look at game franchises that have been around a long time, then. When I was producing the Shanghai series for Activision, the term Shanghai was a registered trademark, and each version's full title was only a trademark. Don't look only at the logo on the title screen -- look also at the fine print at the bottom of the box or manual or legalese screen.

-- Tom Sloper -- sloperama.com

Hardcharger

151

May 29, 2011 03:28 PM

Would it be too much trouble to rebrand yourself under a new name? If you have a product that is almost ready to be released and a fan/customer following, a name means nothing right now.

frob

46,221

May 30, 2011 09:34 AM

If you can't secure the original name, get the other business to make you an offer for the domain name. Who knows, they might be tempted to pay you good money for it, and in the meantime you can just move on.

If you decide to do it, proceed with caution.

There is a fine line between trying to get good money selling your domain name vs inviting lawsuits for "domain squatting" vs extortion. There are many stories about people who tried to sell a domain name or held out for more money, only to face legal consequences.

Sometimes even simple wording in an email for an offer to buy a domain name can get you in trouble as seemingly dealing in bad faith.

Generally it is best to hold on to it. If they ask you about the domain name, tell them that you have been using it since {date} for your project, and don't offer to sell. If they want to buy the name, re-iterate that you are currently using it (you said above that you are using the name in your project and don't want to abandon it) and be careful to treat any discussion as a professional business transaction.