jtara - 6:51 pm on Jun 20, 2006 (gmt 0)

Then I believe 1000 of websites need to turn in their names.

I think that lots of websites WILL turn in their names, simply because they lack the resources to fight.

I'm not a lawyer, and don't pretend to have a full grasp of the trademark laws. But from observation of other similar situations, I don't think it's quite so clear-cut.

There are zillions of "widget for Windows" products that Microsoft has (apparently) never moved on. They certainly have the resources to do so, should they choose to. Whether this was a strategic decision on the part of Microsoft to get greater publicity for their name, or if they judged that they couldn't legitimately make the claim, I dunno. I can simply observe that the names are out there unchallenged.

I do think that a key concept is whether or not the name causes confusion as to source. Maybe there is an attorney here who can clarify. It's clear to me as a consumer that something that is FOR Windows is NOT Windows.

There are probably many such exemptions for these websites containing "myspace" in the name. As well as many that ARE clearly confusing. And ones that clearly have absolutely nothing to do with myspace.com.

I am sure, though, that we will hear of some company that installs closet organizers who will just give up their name...