Comment by marcjschmidt

Comment by marcjschmidt 10 days ago

I've written Apache Foundation, Software Freedom Conservancy, Free Software Foundation, and OpenSource Initiative, and asked for help. We will see. If OSS has no value to our law makers and the trademark needs to be deleted, that's fine and I accept the loss. But I'm an open-source contributor since over decade and not only love the spirit, but my whole career is based on it. The last thing I can do is to fight for justice, even if it means I need help from bigger firms/initiatives.

kube-system 10 days ago

I can understand why you're frustrated if you feel like you've lost something, but trademarks serve a purpose for facilitating commercial trade. That isn't an attack on everything in the world that isn't non-commercial.

Nobody told you that you can't use the name, right? And you've still got a US mark, don't you? How is any of this harming your project or your career? ... or more importantly, how is this hurting consumers? Consumer protections are the entire legal reason for granting a trademark.

I mean, you can certainly fight their registration. I just don't know what you or your users would actually get out of it?

Reply View 14 replies

Dylan16807 10 days ago

Trademarks serve the same purpose for free goods and services as they do for paid ones. It's just that giving things away for free is rare.
If setting your usage price to $0 means no trademark, that's a pretty big attack on non-commercial services. Alternatively if it's more about tracking, that's also quite bad in a different way.

Reply View | 13 replies
- kube-system 10 days ago
  
  Yes, but ultimately trademarks are a consumer protection, and what matters in granting a trademark is protecting consumers from harm.
  I don't know much about this OSS project... but if there's a case that they need this trademark to protect consumers from harm, then that's your winning argument.
  > If setting your usage price to $0 means no trademark, that's a pretty big attack on non-commercial services.
  If you really are not doing commerce, trademarks are irrelevant. You can't get one, and you don't need one.
  
  Reply View | 12 replies
  
  Dylan16807 10 days ago
  
  > Yes, but ultimately trademarks are a consumer protection, and what matters in granting a trademark is protecting consumers from harm.
  Yes, protecting consumers. And people are equally consumers of something whether they pay $1 or $0.
  > but if there's a case that they need this trademark to protect consumers from harm, then that's your winning argument.
  Other than the normal argument for trademark and the evidence of use they had? If you have to show a specific argument for harm, that's way too high of a bar.
  > If you really are not doing commerce, trademarks are irrelevant. You can't get one, and you don't need one.
  Define "commerce" here.
  If we count competing in the market but your product happens to be $0 as commerce, then sure I can agree but this project passes the test.
  If a price of $0 disqualifies you from "commerce" then no way, trademarks are not irrelevant and you do still need one. Consumers need to be able to find your product and avoid imitators.
  
  Reply View | 5 replies
  
  marcjschmidt 10 days ago
  
  Following this logic, does this mean if I have a project name like ABC, and some company decided to incorporate in this name plus registering the trademark, I have to give up the name when they decide to come after me? Like I have a github.com/ABC, a npmjs.com/org/ABC. All just gone, because trademarks right gives them the right, and I have nothing that protects me?
  If that is the case, ok. It's just that I was naive enough to believe I could protect my little open-source project from this using a trademark. The EUPIO somewhat confirmed in their writing that you don't need commercial activities, but you need "genuine use", which is, again, hard to prove if you don't collect user data.
  
  Reply View | 1 reply
  
  kube-system 10 days ago
  
  "ABC" is already a trademark. There's probably dozens if not hundreds of trademarks for "ABC".
  Trademarks are only the right to use a name commercially for a particular good or service.
  Anything outside of that is fair game.
  
  Reply View | 0 replies
  
  ummonk 10 days ago
  
  If I consume a good or service then I’m a consumer, whether I had to pay for that good/service or not. As a consumer, it is in my interest that I can look up the name of the good or service and not have confusion as to which good/service I’m obtaining.
  
  Reply View | 3 replies