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Potential website competition & trademark issue

PowerOnePowerOne subscriber Posts: 1
edited July 2006 in Protecting Your Ideas
I own a retail store website (website ends in .COM).  I`ve been in business for 7 years and have owned my domain for just as long.  About 2 years ago, a site with the same name (but ending in .ORG) appeared.  So far, it does not appear they are directly selling anything, but they run a Community Forum (doesn`t appear to be hugely successful, based on the number of postings).  So, here are my questions:
1) Should I formally register my trademark?  Thus far, I have only used my domain name.  Do I have any rights by being first to market under this name on the web?
2) If I do register my trademark, do I then ask them to "cease & desist", or should I attempt to partner with them somehow?  Or, can I "license" my trademark to them for running this website?
Any thoughts?
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Comments

  • davennydavenny subscriber Posts: 2
    Dear Powerone,
    Great question , in regards to your first question I would recommend that you register your trademark.  I`m not a lawyer, however I believe you do not have any rights by being first to market under this name on the web.
    One of our members is a patent and trademark specialist, his name is Chad Smith, you can contact him that 206-217-2200.  I find is billable hour very reasonable.
    In regards to your second question I believe it would be hard to force them to cease and desist, and I`d normally recommend partnerships.  However the licensing idea is an out of the box concept which could have some potential.
    Good luck, I wish you great success.
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  • patentandtrademarkpatentandtrademark subscriber Posts: 103
    You can sometimes dispute the other person`s registration if their registration was done in "bad faith."  I can speak with you about this and registering the trademark.  Many trademark rights are based on use of the mark, and not just registration - so being the first user [a.k.a. senior user] is very helpful.  I operate on a flat fee for most things, which offers more predictability in legal fees than the hourly rate approach. 
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  • fullfigureworkoutfullfigureworkout subscriber Posts: 1
      I am trademarked Nationally, and I attempted in 2005 to setup a website using my trademark name, and contacted a similar online business in hopes that they would purchase for their customers my product........they began to use in their meta tag, the 1st three letters of my business trademark name to escalate them in search engines.......
    I have had zero luck help or direction in how to have them cease and decisit in using my name, which my research over the years had shown me that the combination of how my business name is used and laid out had not been used.
    I ended my online efforts until I can build a defense fund that is needed to enforce online trademark infringement which is growing rapidly........Reality.....I`m sorry to be the bearer of such news........Good Luck......
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