redTube.. for example. is Tube trademarked? Lets say i want to make a video site: NeverEverCleverTube.com Allowed?
The word "tube" is not trademarked afiak, there are tons of youtube clones out their that use it and none of them have been sued over it.
Not only is it not trademarked, the word "tube" can't be trademarked in any class where it is merely descriptive of the service it provides, in this case television or the "tube". If you wanted to trademark it for the name of an icecream store, that'd be a different thing altogether... 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.
I was thinking the same thing. It all depends on how anal the company is too. Ebay thinks they own the rights to the word "Bay" and they sued the company Perfume Bay because when you connect the terms together (as in a domain name it looks like "ebay" is part of the name. And the outcome: Ebay won....
Which isn't the only factor in showing confusion occurred: http://www.ca9.uscourts.gov/ca9/newopinions.nsf/85AEE84897725D758825738A005C180E/$file/0556794.pdf?openelement No, eBay didn't sue, much more win, by virtue of the name only.
The word tube cannot be trademarked because it is not a brand name, and even if it were then adding something to it would no longer make it copyright. For e.g. Nike is a registered trademark You can still use jinike As long as the word is one then there is no problem, in the case above regarding perfume bay, that would be a problem, if the company was perfumebay then it would not be a problem.
How do you know?? Have you researched it? Have you looked in the TM database at anytime within a reasonable time period? NO, YOU HAVN'T Just because none are sued, doesn't mean it's not illegal or breaking any copyright laws, trademark laws or whatever... I can see where you're coming from but this is all bad advice.
Mrfazee, Sorry, but just adding letters to an otherwise trademarked name, particularly a strong one, like Nike, isn't going to guarantee that you've got a name that doesn't violate trademark law. The essence of the problem is something called "likelihood of confusion". If I wanted to open an auction site called "aeBay" could eBay stop me? Darn skippy. If I wanted to sell shoes called "Nikee", could Nike stop me? Yup. Now if I wanted to open a restaurant called "Nikee", could Nike stop me, probably not. You have to look at the name you're choosing, look at the type of business and ask yourself, "Could a reasonable person think that this company is owned by the original trademark holder?" If so, DON'T DO IT! If you don't know, poll 20 people on the street randomly. Show them a picture of your "Nikee" shoes and ask them who they think made them.... If you start getting the answer, "Nike", then you're in trouble... Understand? Let me know if you have other questions. Deena
The word your looking for their is trademark laws, not copyright laws. It is true that just because no own has been sued doesn't mean you aren't violating copyright laws. But I did do a quick trademark search online, which doesn't cover everything but does give you a pretty good idea. I also happen to know that there are many extremely large and profitable video sites that have tube in them porntube, redtube etc. If youtube was going to sue or try to shutdown anyone they would start with larger sites, something they obviously have not done. Couple that with the fact that "Tube" is a very generic term that existed long before the site youtube and the odds of you getting sued over a trademark violation are extremely low. Again you can't tell with 100% certainty without going out and hiring a lawyer, which is going to cost you a nice chunk of change. I tried to offer some advice for the OP which I believe is pretty solid and I don't understand why you would flame me over that.
Anything can happen. Google might take legal action, or even Oogle might zap you into dust, or you could be successful and Google will leave you alone...as long as your site won't be about search engine services, though. Possibilities are endless.