I wonder why people always start claiming their rights so late.
However, a trademark application for the name was not filed until May - when rumours about Microsoft's new product had already spread widely across the internet.
Microsoft, meanwhile, filed its own trademark applications for the name in March - for a variety of uses, including search engine software, interface software, advertising, telecoms and for "providing a website and website links to geographic information, map images and trip routing".
Aren't you obliged to protect your mark? Seems to me they have nothing on MS.
I wonder why people always start claiming their rights so late.
Because obtaining trademarks is costly and time-consuming, and because an unregistered trademarks is still a protected mark. This is a fairly small company who, until recently, probably found that an unregistered trademark was sufficient for them. Now that Microsoft has started using the name, they've decided they need to protect themselves further.
Aren't you obliged to protect your mark?
They are. They filed suit and began the process of registering their trademark. They've been using it since 2000, so they should have no problem getting the trademark, since the system is "first to use", not "first to file".
Don't you at least need to assert an unregistered trademark with "TM" somewhere? Nowhere on the "Bing! Information Design" web page do I see a "TM". How would MS have known that "Bing!" was a trademark if there was no assertion? And wouldn't "Bing!" be different than "Bing"?
No, it's not required to put "TM" next to a trademark. While it might be harder to enforce trademark protection with some unregistered marks, the use of the primary identification component of a company's name is relatively easy (the relative word is the important one here, not the "easy") to defend. Usually unregistered trademarks are delineated by area of geographical influence. In this case, if Bing! IS wins their suit, Microsoft would be prevented from using the trademark within Bing! IS's area of geogr
An unregistered Trademark is usually enforcable only within a relatively small geographic area. They were not marketting their brand nationally, in fact , their brand has nothing to do with search or web design, their brand is not registered, in short, it fails virtually all of the tests needed to enforce an unregistered trademark.
This truly feels like yet another attempt to get free cash from Microsoft. IMHO they have a better chance of getting that cash from Bing Cashback purchases then from the lawsuit..
Because obtaining trademarks is costly and time-consuming
It's a few hundred dollars for the application fee if you do the work yourself. If you have someone else do it, it might be a few times that in many cases. Bing! Information Design likely spent far more working with an attorney to file this lawsuit then what it would have cost to get a trademark. And their company has been around since 2000 according to their site, so time-consuming really wasn't a factor either.
Little known fact about Middle Earth: The Hobbits had a very sophisticated
computer network! It was a Tolkien Ring...
Trapped! (Score:5, Insightful)
However, a trademark application for the name was not filed until May - when rumours about Microsoft's new product had already spread widely across the internet.
Microsoft, meanwhile, filed its own trademark applications for the name in March - for a variety of uses, including search engine software, interface software, advertising, telecoms and for "providing a website and website links to geographic information, map images and trip routing".
Aren't you obliged to protect your mark? Seems to me they have nothing on MS.
Re:Trapped! (Score:5, Informative)
I wonder why people always start claiming their rights so late.
Because obtaining trademarks is costly and time-consuming, and because an unregistered trademarks is still a protected mark. This is a fairly small company who, until recently, probably found that an unregistered trademark was sufficient for them. Now that Microsoft has started using the name, they've decided they need to protect themselves further.
Aren't you obliged to protect your mark?
They are. They filed suit and began the process of registering their trademark. They've been using it since 2000, so they should have no problem getting the trademark, since the system is "first to use", not "first to file".
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
No, it's not required to put "TM" next to a trademark. While it might be harder to enforce trademark protection with some unregistered marks, the use of the primary identification component of a company's name is relatively easy (the relative word is the important one here, not the "easy") to defend. Usually unregistered trademarks are delineated by area of geographical influence. In this case, if Bing! IS wins their suit, Microsoft would be prevented from using the trademark within Bing! IS's area of geogr
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ID. Bing! ID. I apparently am not to be trusted with remembering simple things from one moment to the next. Carry on!
Re: (Score:1)
An unregistered Trademark is usually enforcable only within a relatively small geographic area. They were not marketting their brand nationally, in fact , their brand has nothing to do with search or web design, their brand is not registered, in short, it fails virtually all of the tests needed to enforce an unregistered trademark.
This truly feels like yet another attempt to get free cash from Microsoft. IMHO they have a better chance of getting that cash from Bing Cashback purchases then from the lawsuit..
Re: (Score:2)
It's a few hundred dollars for the application fee if you do the work yourself. If you have someone else do it, it might be a few times that in many cases. Bing! Information Design likely spent far more working with an attorney to file this lawsuit then what it would have cost to get a trademark. And their company has been around since 2000 according to their site, so time-consuming really wasn't a factor either.