how can you trademark a name/product/website domain... I know you can't trademark common words... how can you trademark a name? and what can and can't be trademarked?
Oh? Then why are there Tide detergents in the supermarket and Shell stations for loading up gas? Anyway, practically any word can become a trademark as long as it isn't being used in its descriptive sense. You can't have Apple as a trademark for sellling a basket of fruits, but you can use it to sell maybe fire extinguishers. You have a trademark when you use the term to commercially identify its only source. If you're using Apple to sell fire extinguishers, you have a trademark. One question, then, becomes how to show when you first started using it as a trademark. That's where filing an application at the relevant jurisdiction comes into play, and hopefully it does get approved to become a registered mark or so. IANAL, but one who just happens to be keen on these things and learned this the hard way from a bunch of lawyers who drilled them through my hard head. (And if you're reading this, Deena, feel free to correct me if I made a mistake somewhere...)
No need for correction Dave, you got it exactly right... If you need more information on how to file a trademark, the USPTO (www.uspto.gov) has a very easy tutorial on their site and an easy to read FAQ. I recommend, based on recent TTAB (which is the trademark appeals board) rulings that you have an attorney file for you, but you aren't required to do that. You can file as a layperson. Let me know if you have other questions. Deena _____________________________________________________________________ Any opinions are offered without knowledge of the specific law of your jurisdiction and with only the limited information provided in your post. No advice given here should be reasonably relied upon by you or any third party without consulting an attorney who is aware of all of the facts and law surrounding your situation. Any advice given here is not intended to create an attorney-client relationship in any way.