5 ms·

Isn't this an unfortunate aspect of trademark law? As the owner if it is shown that you do not make an effort to go after unauthorized use than a more unscrupu

Isn't this an unfortunate aspect of trademark law? As the owner if it is shown that you do not make an effort to go after unauthorized use than a more unscrupulous trademark thief could then steal your trademark and win in court?

MayeulC 6y ago
Not really: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/11/trademark-law-does-not-require-companies-tirelessly-censor-internet https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/11/trademark-law-does-not... In general, companies can just enforce it as they see fit, but nothing forces them to do so. Quotes from the article: > That matters because Canonical’s actions reflect a much bigger problem: a pervasive and unfounded belief that if you don’t police every unauthorized use of a trademark you are in danger of losing it. > The circumstances under which a company could actually lose a trademark—such as abandonment and genericide—are quite limited. It could be argued that "Raspberry Pi" might be more at risk of a genericide than "Ubuntu", but we are still far from it, and I am not even sure enforcing their copyright would help in that case.
- ealexhudson 6y ago
  While that's true in general, in this specific case the website has a store (= set of links) for you to buy Raspberry Pi. They have linked to authorised distributors, but also sell their own BerryClip products as well. I do think there is an obvious risk that a visitor would be confused about whether they are Raspberry Pi themselves or not.
  - MayeulC 6y ago
    Yes, maybe. That enforcement policy is at least consistent with their guidelines, at outlined in the e-mail their received, so it shouldn't come as a surprise: https://www.raspberrypi.org/trademark-rules/ https://www.raspberrypi.org/trademark-rules/ Though these rules are a bit wordy and sound legalese rather than guidelines. It might have been easier if the Pi foundation was named differently, but I understand their position, though IMO a disclaimer that this is an unofficial website (as if the -spy didn't give it away) should be enough.
- roland35 6y ago
  Thanks for the clarification! I learned something new today!
pacificmint 6y ago
That’s an oft repeated myth, but it’s not quite true. From an article by the EFF: > The circumstances under which a company could actually lose a trademark—such as abandonment and genericide—are quite limited. Genericide […] is very rare […]. Courts also set a very high bar to show abandonment (usually years of total non-use). Importantly, failure to enforce a mark against every potential infringer does not show abandonment. [1] https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/11/trademark-law-does-not-require-companies-tirelessly-censor-internet https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/11/trademark-law-does-not...
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detaro 6y ago
Then authorize the usage?
deleted 6y ago
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pbhjpbhj 6y ago
No. Pay your renewal fee. AFAIK, corrections more than welcome, there is no legal basis for this idea that you can lose a trademark by not challenging an infringer. You can certainly lose damages: you can't wait until someone built a £million business and then say 'oops, now we take your money'. If it were true then after 8 years RaspberryPi would have lost their mark, surely. Not legal advice. Personal comment in no way relating to my employment.

MayeulC 6y ago

Not really: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/11/trademark-law-does-not-require-companies-tirelessly-censor-internet https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/11/trademark-law-does-not... In general, companies can just enforce it as they see fit, but nothing forces them to do so. Quotes from the article: > That matters because Canonical’s actions reflect a much bigger problem: a pervasive and unfounded belief that if you don’t police every unauthorized use of a trademark you are in danger of losing it. > The circumstances under which a company could actually lose a trademark—such as abandonment and genericide—are quite limited. It could be argued that "Raspberry Pi" might be more at risk of a genericide than "Ubuntu", but we are still far from it, and I am not even sure enforcing their copyright would help in that case.

ealexhudson 6y ago
While that's true in general, in this specific case the website has a store (= set of links) for you to buy Raspberry Pi. They have linked to authorised distributors, but also sell their own BerryClip products as well. I do think there is an obvious risk that a visitor would be confused about whether they are Raspberry Pi themselves or not.
- MayeulC 6y ago
  Yes, maybe. That enforcement policy is at least consistent with their guidelines, at outlined in the e-mail their received, so it shouldn't come as a surprise: https://www.raspberrypi.org/trademark-rules/ https://www.raspberrypi.org/trademark-rules/ Though these rules are a bit wordy and sound legalese rather than guidelines. It might have been easier if the Pi foundation was named differently, but I understand their position, though IMO a disclaimer that this is an unofficial website (as if the -spy didn't give it away) should be enough.
roland35 6y ago
Thanks for the clarification! I learned something new today!

pacificmint 6y ago

That’s an oft repeated myth, but it’s not quite true. From an article by the EFF: > The circumstances under which a company could actually lose a trademark—such as abandonment and genericide—are quite limited. Genericide […] is very rare […]. Courts also set a very high bar to show abandonment (usually years of total non-use). Importantly, failure to enforce a mark against every potential infringer does not show abandonment. [1] https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/11/trademark-law-does-not-require-companies-tirelessly-censor-internet https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/11/trademark-law-does-not...

deleted 6y ago

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detaro 6y ago

Then authorize the usage?

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]

pbhjpbhj 6y ago

No. Pay your renewal fee. AFAIK, corrections more than welcome, there is no legal basis for this idea that you can lose a trademark by not challenging an infringer. You can certainly lose damages: you can't wait until someone built a £million business and then say 'oops, now we take your money'. If it were true then after 8 years RaspberryPi would have lost their mark, surely. Not legal advice. Personal comment in no way relating to my employment.