Trademark & Domain Names

actionplanbiz · 04-30-2010, 12:04 AM

Hey Warriors,

I Just Registered a Domain Name containing a Company's Name, but it is not registered as a Trademark just yet.

Infringement? Legal? Ok?

The main reason I got this domain name is mainly for its Google search volume. But if the Company decides to Register it as a trademark later down the road will i run into problems?

Thanks

tommy6336 · 04-30-2010, 12:10 AM

If they don't have it registered right now then you don't have a problem.

Now if it were someone like Google and you were trying to make a search engine named foogle or something that would pull from their traffic then I think you would have a problem because google has a ton of stuff trademarked.

Prime example. The band Kiss wasn't the first band with that name. Gene Simmons trademarked the name Kiss and then the first band which was older had to change their name.

But I don't think that will work the same for you. You won't be able to get that company to change their name because they are already a company.

But I'm pretty sure they can't come after you for the name since they never trademarked it.

gman2319 · 04-30-2010, 04:42 AM

1)If the content on your domain is about the company or its products then you are violating trademark. So even if they get a trademark on that word you are good.
2)As long as the company doesn't have a trademark on the term then you have no issues. But it will be a violation, when they get the trademark AND the content on your site is related to them.

Having said that, if you are promoting a product of theirs, I havent experienced or heard of companies pulling down the domain unless it is a highly premium domain.

For Eg. Apple went after a guy who had the domain "macbookpro.com" with him. Along with that, they got another 15 not-so-great domains owned by that guy, for good measure.

awmi · 04-30-2010, 08:50 PM

I have seen several cases where the use of trademark domain to help promote a company's product and services is tolerated. I assume if there is misrepresentation and slander, the affected company will take action. However it doesn't hurt to play it safe.

valdivz · 04-30-2010, 09:31 PM

suppose I wanted to rank for Best Buy Gift cards ..but my domain doesn't have their name in it...and the content of my site was not only offering Best Buy gift cards (cpa offer) but also offering other goodies from other companies....

do you think that would be ok????

04-30-2010, 12:04 AM	#1
actionplanbiz edgedweapons War Room Member Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 959 Thanks: 169 Thanked 63 Times in 61 Posts Social Networking	Trademark & Domain Names Hey Warriors, I Just Registered a Domain Name containing a Company's Name, but it is not registered as a Trademark just yet. Infringement? Legal? Ok? The main reason I got this domain name is mainly for its Google search volume. But if the Company decides to Register it as a trademark later down the road will i run into problems? Thanks
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04-30-2010, 12:10 AM	#2
tommy6336 Active Warrior Join Date: Apr 2010 Posts: 50 Thanks: 4 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Trademark & Domain Names If they don't have it registered right now then you don't have a problem. Now if it were someone like Google and you were trying to make a search engine named foogle or something that would pull from their traffic then I think you would have a problem because google has a ton of stuff trademarked. Prime example. The band Kiss wasn't the first band with that name. Gene Simmons trademarked the name Kiss and then the first band which was older had to change their name. But I don't think that will work the same for you. You won't be able to get that company to change their name because they are already a company. But I'm pretty sure they can't come after you for the name since they never trademarked it.

04-30-2010, 04:42 AM	#3
gman2319 Gowri War Room Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: India Posts: 118 Thanks: 29 Thanked 7 Times in 6 Posts	Re: Trademark & Domain Names 1)If the content on your domain is about the company or its products then you are violating trademark. So even if they get a trademark on that word you are good. 2)As long as the company doesn't have a trademark on the term then you have no issues. But it will be a violation, when they get the trademark AND the content on your site is related to them. Having said that, if you are promoting a product of theirs, I havent experienced or heard of companies pulling down the domain unless it is a highly premium domain. For Eg. Apple went after a guy who had the domain "macbookpro.com" with him. Along with that, they got another 15 not-so-great domains owned by that guy, for good measure.
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04-30-2010, 08:50 PM	#4
awmi Tony T Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Florida Posts: 166 Thanks: 16 Thanked 16 Times in 15 Posts	Re: Trademark & Domain Names I have seen several cases where the use of trademark domain to help promote a company's product and services is tolerated. I assume if there is misrepresentation and slander, the affected company will take action. However it doesn't hurt to play it safe.
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04-30-2010, 09:31 PM	#5
valdivz HyperActive Warrior Join Date: May 2009 Location: Orlando,FL Posts: 240 Thanks: 6 Thanked 15 Times in 12 Posts Social Networking	Re: Trademark & Domain Names suppose I wanted to rank for Best Buy Gift cards ..but my domain doesn't have their name in it...and the content of my site was not only offering Best Buy gift cards (cpa offer) but also offering other goodies from other companies.... do you think that would be ok????
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