Today, I had my name Generic'd and my 3x Costumes erased, what do you think?
By
Ad Astra,
Posted on: 2010-03-08 14:33 in Player Questions
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That is not correct. The factor used by the court is whether the alleged violation creates a likelihood of confusion. Many trademark claims are for "similar but not exact" copies.
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Originally Posted by Sharker_Quint
trademark, yes. copywrite, no. if it was true that you could copywrite a name, anyone would have free reign to file lawsuits against anyone or anything that had the name. in order for a trademark violation to go through court it has to be the same exact thing as the original, i.e.: same name, costume, powers...
as it stands, the GM's will generic any name or costume to save anything from happening. even the littlest thing. |
LOCAL MAN! The most famous hero of all. There are more newspaper stories about me than anyone else. "Local Man wins Medal of Honor." "Local Man opens Animal Shelter." "Local Man Charged with..." (Um, forget about that one.)
Guide Links: Earth/Rad Guide, Illusion/Rad Guide, Electric Control
Because clearly only blizzard uses that name. /sarcasm. Id fight this one.
Friends don't let friends buy an ncsoft controlled project.
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Other people may use the name in other capacities. Regardless, in THIS game there are rules about not using names that may be protected. You agree to abide by those rules every time you enter the game. Period.
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Originally Posted by Noyjitat
Because clearly only blizzard uses that name. /sarcasm. Id fight this one.
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Don�t say things. What you are stands over you the while, and thunders so that I cannot hear what you say to the contrary. - R.W. Emerson |
YUMMY Low-Hanging Fruit for BASE LUV
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His lawyers don't agree with you. |
Originally Posted by MunkiLord
He doesn't have to act.
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Of course that is more a commentary upon the sad state of our legal system than anything else, I'm afraid. 
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This is truth. For example Monster Cables is famous for suing for trademark violations. If another cable(as in AV, HDMI, etc) maker used Monster in their marketing or advertising they would probably lose a lawsuit. |
Originally Posted by Local_Man
That is not correct. The factor used by the court is whether the alleged violation creates a likelihood of confusion. Many trademark claims are for "similar but not exact" copies.
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However, if you named your energy drink Monster, you are fine because even a moron in a hurry wouldn't be confused. Trademark is there to protect the consumer from being mislead.
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Originally Posted by Tyrrano
His lawyers don't agree with you.
Of course that is more a commentary upon the sad state of our legal system than anything else, I'm afraid. |
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They don't delete your character, and do give you a name change option - i think you have to mail in suggestions.
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Originally Posted by Berzerker_NA
I think when a name infringement wasn't obviously deliberate, they should give you a free rename token after generic-ing you. It sucks to totally lose a character just because some fantasy company has a character you've never even heard of.
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I don't suffer from altitis, I enjoy every minute of it.
Thank you Devs & Community people for a great game.
So sad to be ending ):
Only way to deal with this issue is to contact the GM's, either through the link in the email you should have received or through the link in my signature. Arguing or discussing it on the forums doesn't help I'm afraid.
-Mod8-
If you are using Latin in your post you are probably trolling
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True, it doesn't have to be on the list to be copyrighted. Like I said before however, you can't copyright names. Therefore, that name is not copyrighted.
From what I recall, the suit with Marvel lasted for quite a while until it was settled. I seem to recall that Marvel lost a Motion to Dimiss, and settled before amending the Complaint. It probably cost NC Soft and/or Cryptic quite a few thousand dollars before it was settled.
Generally names would be protected by Trademark, not copyright. In fact, most trademarks are the names of products, companies and services -- most comic characters are trademarked since trademarks can last forever while copyright has a limited duration. If the owner of the trademark does not actively protect the trademark, the owner can lose it. As a result, sometimes stupid lawsuits are filed to try to protect trademarks.
LOCAL MAN! The most famous hero of all. There are more newspaper stories about me than anyone else. "Local Man wins Medal of Honor." "Local Man opens Animal Shelter." "Local Man Charged with..." (Um, forget about that one.)
Guide Links: Earth/Rad Guide, Illusion/Rad Guide, Electric Control