Disclaimer: I don't own any such domain names nor do I intend on getting any, but just wanted to know this for my own information What's the legality behind getting a domain name that has an abbreviation for a company name within it? For instance: WPthemes.com (Wordpress themes) MStips.com (Microsoft tips) etc. My guess is that it falls under the "commercial confusion" issue and can be pursued, but I've been seeing lots of these kinds of sites on the internet, and they seem to go unpunished.
There is only confusion if you are using a trademark in the domain name. As to your examples - I checked both the Microsoft trademark list which they post online and the wordpress site. MS is not a registered trademark of Microsoft and therefore you would be free to us the domain MStips.com. However, MSN is a trademark of Microsoft so you could not use MSNtips.com. Similarly, WP is not a trademark of wordpress and you would be free to use WPthemes.com. _______________________________ Andrew Jaffe Attorney at Law 330-666-5026
As an attorney, you should know that trademarks do not need to be registered in the US and infringement does not need to be exact- the test is the "likelihood of confusion" and the usage of the site. It is incorrect and misleading to state that because someone does not have a registered mark, it is fair game to use. Do you have IP experience?
You are correct, trademarks do not need to be registered, they do however need to be used in commerce. As an example, let's talk about Microsoft. Nowhere have I found Microsoft using "MS" as a trademark. Unless they use the trademark in commerce, it does not belong to them. Further, you might be interested to know that ms.com is the website of Morgan Stanley. As to my experience, I am one of the most experienced internet law atttorneys in the country. I have limited my practice to internet law since 2003 and have defended clients in over 30 internet cases. Feel free to visit my website for more information. netlaws.com ____________________ Andrew Jaffe Attorney at Law 330-666-5026
While I do not disagree that the use of the OP domain names would likely not cause infringement objections (of course it is possible) - I did want to make it clear that trademark infringement does not need to be exact. "Google" has never used (to the best of my knowledge) "gooogle" but an attempt to use a domain for a rival product or service would clearly be infringement. Similar, misspellings, phonetic, and even foreign spellings can all constitute trademark infringement. Anytime you attempt to ride the goodwill of a mark owned by someone else you open the door to litigation. This comes from over 15 years of experience in IP disputes and well over a dozen court cases. When it comes to infringement, it is usually never black and white, rather a huge grey area that often comes down to if the other "thinks" it is infringement and who has the most money.
The google vs gooogle example above is a good one! mjewel's post above is correct, you can infringe a trademark without using the exact mark. As we discussed above, trademark infringement is about whether or not you are attempting to profit from another's trademark and goodwill. Misspellings and phonetics will not get around that issue.