...a trademark

Answer by John Nowakowski
Submitted on 9/24/2003
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[This does not constitute legal advice. If you are in an intellectual property dispute, consult an attorney.] Trademarks originated with craftsmen. When a master had crafted the object of his trade, he would mark it with a little symbol of authorship. The trademark let purchasers know 1) who the manufacturer was and 2) that they could rely on the manufacturer's skill in fashioning a quality product. The trademark allowed a craftsman to build a reputation as a manufacturer of quality goods. Of course, this system only worked because no one was supposed to forge the trademarks of reputable craftsman onto their own shoddy goods. Your trademark was your exclusive mark in your trade. Times have changed, but the idea behind trademarks are still the same. Now we might think of them more commonly as "brand names" or designer labels, but the idea is the same. That's why no one else can start a movie company named "Disney" or a magazine named "Playboy" or sell a soft-drink named "Pepsi" without getting sued by those businesses. They hold the trademark in those names. Even Disney, Inc. doesn't put the name Disney on every movie that comes out of the corporation's subsidiaries, such as the R-rated movies. In fact, you really couldn't sell soda pop named "Pep-zi" or "Pep-see" or something too derivative. Pepsi could argue it was done just to ride off of their reputation. Even if McDonald's doesn't have a rep for making the greatest food in America, it has a reputation for a certain quality, at a certain price, in a reasonably fast time, etc. These companies build marks in their trade which are legally recognized and protected. First, it would be unfair to let third-parties profit from the mark that another has built up themselves. Second, companies that build a reputation for a reliable level of quality do not want to get a bad name caused by third-parties releasing inferior products under their name. Third, consumers want to rely on that expectation of quality from the mark and not be subject to inferior goods from a third party. Not just companies, but even proper names can build a mark in a trade. Even if my name was Stephen King, I could not reasonably sell a horror novel under the name Stephen King, now that another Stephen King has built up a mark in that trade. This is different than a copyright violation, which would happen if I took a Stephen King novel and sold it as if I were the author. There are lots of subtle twists to intellectual property law, but the key with trademarks is whether there is a reasonable chance of confusion.

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Question by latina
Submitted on 9/18/2003
Related FAQ: N/A
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what is a trademark

Answer by beautifull
Submitted on 11/20/2006
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who the hell wrote that

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