The “Do’s” of IP Due Diligence

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So you’ve been asked to help acquire a company with an extensive IP portfolio. Great! Now it’s time for that mysterious task known as “due diligence.” Due diligence is intended to confirm all of the assets that a buyer will obtain in an acquisition and to resolve any discrepancies before the deal closes.

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Playing a game of “Guess Who”: the domain name dispute process post-GDPR

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Since the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) went into effect in late May, its impact continues to be felt by cybersecurity researchers, investigators, law enforcement officials and – perhaps less obviously – anyone who relies on the information provided by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers’ (ICANN) WHOIS service. This includes lawyers, like us, who routinely check WHOIS to ascertain the identity of a domain name registrant.

ICANN requires domain name registrars to collect information, such as basic contact information, from domain name registrants. Previously, absent a paid privacy shield service adopted by the registrant, the information collected was made publicly available by the registrar through the WHOIS database. Now, in an effort to avoid liability under the sweeping GDPR, registrars are refraining from publishing this information. Instead, per a temporary specification developed by ICANN, many are providing a randomized email address or web-based contact only, which can be used to contact the registrant anonymously.

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Brand Visibility via Commercial Co-Venture Agreements

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We’re seeing a lot of commercial co-ventures (CCVs) lately.  It makes sense, right?  CCVs can be a win-win for all parties involved – a company informs the public that it will donate a portion of its sales revenue to a nonprofit organization and, in return, the nonprofit allows the company to use the nonprofit’s brand name to market the product or service.  (For example:  “For every bottle of honey purchased in November 2018, Good Intentions Stores will donate 25 cents to the Fictional National Honeybee Preservation Society.”)  Such collaborations can increase the company’s sales and goodwill, and the nonprofit benefits from donations.

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Making Trademark Applications “Special”

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We tend to think that trademarks, in general, are pretty special.

However, a “special” trademark application has a … well … special meaning to the PTO.  The PTO normally examines applications in the order it receives them, which can take about three to four months.  That said, there are two ways to make an application “special” so that the PTO will pull the application out of order and expedite its initial examination.

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Strategies for Squashing Sketchy Specimens

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So your time-of-filing trademark watching service 1 warned you that someone filed a use-based application to register a mark that’s awfully close to your mark.

You drill into their application file history and notice that their proof of use of their trademark looks like this:

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A Look at Brand Lifeguarding: Trademark Watching

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In a September 6, 2018 webinar hosted by CompuMark, I presented on the very important topic of trademark watching services. Thanks to CompuMark for inviting me to speak, and to everyone who attended the webinar and asked great questions!  (If all goes according to plan, future blog posts may cover some of the questions we ran out of time to answer during the webinar).  For those who weren’t able to make the webinar during the live presentation, you can access a copy on CompuMark’s website (you’ll need to register on the right side of the screen).

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Tricks to Transferring Trademarks

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A trademark assignment is the transfer of ownership of a mark.  This usually entails having the owner transfer all its rights, title and interest in a given mark to a third party.

Sounds pretty straightforward, right?  Well, imagine you’re not just assigning one trademark to a third party – instead you’re transferring an entire portfolio containing hundreds of marks in dozens of countries.  Generally, this transfer of rights must be documented – or recorded – with the trademark office in every jurisdiction where marks have been assigned.  Otherwise, the outdated Trademark Office records relating to the ownership of a mark could cause issues, like blocking new applications filed in the new owner’s name.  The requirements for assigning trademarks and recording this transfer of rights often vary by jurisdiction, so handling the transfer of a global trademark portfolio can become a major undertaking.

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Five Reasons NOT to Register Your Trademark

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Our followers know that we get a little giddy at the prospect of registering trademarks.  It’s almost as much fun as deep-fried Twinkies!  (Um, make that “Twinkies® brand sponge cakes.”)  So why are we posting about reasons NOT to register your mark?  Well, although we love global brands, you may sometimes be better off skipping or delaying those new applications.  Consider, for example, the following:

  1. How long will you continue to use the brandIf you will only use the mark for a short time, or in a limited geographical area, maybe it’s not worth spending the money on registration.  You might even stop using the brand before the application matures to registration!
  2. Is your industry brand-focused?  In some industries, brands can be (gasp!) a little less important. If your competitors don’t tend to copy your brand names, consider applying to register only your most important brand names.
  3. Might the Trademark Office consider the mark descriptive? If you’re at risk of a refusal to register the mark on descriptiveness grounds, you might refrain from applying, or wait until after you have used the mark for five years.
  4. Is there a crowded field of similar marks? If you’re not keen on trying to persuade the Trademark Office to withdraw a refusal to register your mark on the ground of confusion with five prior third-party registrations (ugh), maybe your resources would be better spent on something other than a new application…like finding a new brand?
  5. Is there a compelling reason to register the mark now? In some cases, if you’ve been using an unregistered brand for a while, maybe there’s no need to disrupt the status quo, particularly if the brand isn’t especially valuable or distinctive, you’re facing serious registrability hurdles, and there’s no infringement you need to stamp out.  Why call attention to yourself and invite oppositions when no confusion has arisen in the real-world marketplace?

Of course, the above considerations may not apply in every case.  If a brand’s importance is increasing, you’re entering new territories, or you have infringement concerns, it’s often a good idea to conduct searches and file applications.  Just wanted to share some (fat-free) food for thought before you rush into filing globally!