9 ms·

To be honest, when I looked at this title, I thought Comcast made a tool and publicized the tool to simulate suboptimal network...

Hydraulix989 4y ago
This is the type of confusion trademark law seeks to protect against.
- chaostheory 4y ago
  Maybe he can rename it to “comcrap”? Jokes aside it’s probably better to use a less controversial name.
  - reaperducer 4y ago
    Maybe he can rename it to “comcrap”? Jokes aside it’s probably better to use a less controversial name. Perhaps he should rebrand it "Xfinity." That seems like a perfectly harmless name that is in no way associated with poor products and crap customer service.
    - bee_rider 4y ago
      Since it is designed to simulate a poor network, Xfinite would be a funny name.
  - juunpp 4y ago
  - CawCawCaw 4y ago
    comcaste
- turdnagel 4y ago
  To begin with, you've got a very narrow set of people who would even discover this project. Now intersect that with the people who will reliably miss context clues ("shitty network connections") to get a joke, and the set becomes even narrower.
  - colejohnson66 4y ago
    Legally, it doesn’t matter. Trademark law (not copyright) requires active enforcement to keep yours. So, even if it’s a joke, the act of making a networking related thing while Comcast has a trademark in that category is enough to make their lawyers wake up.
    - mypalmike 4y ago
      Perhaps being on the front page of HN will be the catalyst which leads to the lawyers being informed.
    - wumpus 4y ago
      Comcast has to actively enforce against ISPs or network providers. Comcast the ISP doesn't have to actively enforce against Comcast brand tires or Comcast brand coffee. A lot of people are confused about this, and big companies use "we have to actively enforce" as an excuse to crush companies in unrelated fields. But you don't.
      - bee_rider 4y ago
        "Duty to police" seems up there with "requirement to maximize profits" in the realm of excuses to indulge in the sort of bad behavior that execs are fond of.
  - dylan604 4y ago
    Yes, but once the lawsuit does come, which lets face it will come (at least a C&D), the dev(s) can have all of the tech trade rags/blogs/forums/etc paste it all over as news. Then, they'll become internet famous. At the end of the day, they probably know they'll have to change the name and are probably hoping for it just for the publicity. Let it live as long as it can, then ride the wave
    - mh- 4y ago
      > which lets face it will come I've had this project starred for at least 7 years, so perhaps Comcast legal has more of a sense of humor than we're giving them credit for.
- juunpp 4y ago
  Not a lawyer, but: https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/basics/what-trademark https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/basics/what-trademark "A common misconception is that having a trademark means you legally own a particular word or phrase and can prevent others from using it. However, you don’t have rights to the word or phrase in general, only to how that word or phrase is used with your specific goods or services. For example, let's say you use a logo as a trademark for your small woodworking business to identify and distinguish your goods or services from others in the woodworking field. This doesn't mean you can stop others from using a similar logo for non-woodworking related goods or services." Comcast the shitty network simulator should not be confused with Comcast the Internet Service Provider. Joke really is on them if they ever file a lawsuit.
  - massysett 4y ago
    Follow the link on that page to “strong trademarks.” Comcast is a made-up, fanciful word, which is a much easier mark to defend.
  - Hydraulix989 4y ago
    A network simulator and an ISP are easily confused according to legal standards. Even The Beatles' Apple Records had a case against Apple Computer in the early days of the company.
    - deleted 4y ago
      [deleted]
    - deleted 4y ago
      [deleted]
  - SeanLuke 4y ago
    Trademarks are registered under specific categories of commerce. It's within those categories that trademark confusion can be argued. Comcast has like 50 trademarks (look them up on TESS), and they impact on everything from cable to internet services to hats and coffee mugs, basically anything the company makes or does. Let's take COMCAST BUSINESS as a random example. This trademark is registered for a variety of categories for which confusion can easily occur, but one stands out (italics mine): > "IC 009. US 021 023 026 036 038. G & S: Downloadable cloud-based software used to back up business data; downloadable cloud-based software used to share business data; downloadable cloud-based software used to send and manage secure documents; *downloadable cloud-based software used to manage, secure and protect computer networks;* downloadable cloud-based software used to create and transmit documents with electronic signatures; downloadable cloud-based software used to manage telephone systems; downloadable cloud-based software used to manage advanced telephone features; downloadable cloud-based software used to provide web conferencing; downloadable cloud-based software used to monitor business security systems; *downloadable cloud-based software used to detect and remediate computer viruses, worms, trojans, spyware, adware, malware and unauthorized data and programs;* high-definition multimedia interface cables; and Ethernet and wireless networking hardware and computer hardware and components thereof." Then there's this one: > "IC 038. US 100 101 104. G & S: *Providing high-speed access to the Internet, mobile networks, wired and wireless networks and other electronic communications networks;* telecommunication access services; telecommunications gateway services; wireless broadband communication services; wireless broadband telecommunications services; telecommunications services, namely, voice, video, and data transmissions provided through the use of cable television distribution facilities; telecommunication services, namely, transmission of voice, data, graphics, images, audio and video by means of wireless communication networks; *high-speed electronic data interchange services provided via modems, hybrid fiber coaxial cable networks, routers, and servers;* electronic, local and long distance transmission of voice, data, and graphics by means of cable, telephone, wireless, ISDN, and technologies; telephone communication services; providing voice communications services via cable, fiber optics, the internet, wired and wireless networks, mobile networks and other electronic communications networks; providing fiber optic network services; Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services; cable television services; cable television broadcasting services; cable television transmission services; providing access to telecommunication networks; provision of telecommunication access to video and audio content via video-on-demand, interactive television, pay per view, and pay television subscription services; video-on-demand transmission services; video conferencing services; wireless PBX services; cloud-based PBX services; streaming of video and audio material via the Internet, wired and wireless networks, mobile networks and other electronic communications networks; telecommunications services, namely, providing advanced calling features and leasing or rental of telecommunications equipment; leasing or rental of telecommunications equipment; computer network access services by means of a metro Ethernet; electronic transmission and streaming of digital media content for others via the Internet, wired and wireless networks, mobile networks and other electronic communications networks; cloud-based communications services in the nature of instant messaging, telephony, audio and video conferencing, screen sharing, file transfer, call control and management, voice mail, e-mail, SMS and facsimile services; and providing wireless hot spots." And that's just the first thing I picked out. It goes on like this. So, yeah. Comcast the network degradation simulation software almost unquestionably overlaps with Comcast's trademarks.
omarhaneef 4y ago
Me too! And my second brief thought was: maybe they forgot to turn it off for me? Wish I was kidding.
spacemanmatt 4y ago
Nah, this is for people who don't already have Comcast.

Hydraulix989 4y ago

This is the type of confusion trademark law seeks to protect against.

chaostheory 4y ago
Maybe he can rename it to “comcrap”? Jokes aside it’s probably better to use a less controversial name.
- reaperducer 4y ago
  Maybe he can rename it to “comcrap”? Jokes aside it’s probably better to use a less controversial name. Perhaps he should rebrand it "Xfinity." That seems like a perfectly harmless name that is in no way associated with poor products and crap customer service.
  - bee_rider 4y ago
    Since it is designed to simulate a poor network, Xfinite would be a funny name.
- juunpp 4y ago
- CawCawCaw 4y ago
  comcaste
turdnagel 4y ago
To begin with, you've got a very narrow set of people who would even discover this project. Now intersect that with the people who will reliably miss context clues ("shitty network connections") to get a joke, and the set becomes even narrower.
- colejohnson66 4y ago
  Legally, it doesn’t matter. Trademark law (not copyright) requires active enforcement to keep yours. So, even if it’s a joke, the act of making a networking related thing while Comcast has a trademark in that category is enough to make their lawyers wake up.
  - mypalmike 4y ago
    Perhaps being on the front page of HN will be the catalyst which leads to the lawyers being informed.
  - wumpus 4y ago
    Comcast has to actively enforce against ISPs or network providers. Comcast the ISP doesn't have to actively enforce against Comcast brand tires or Comcast brand coffee. A lot of people are confused about this, and big companies use "we have to actively enforce" as an excuse to crush companies in unrelated fields. But you don't.
    - bee_rider 4y ago
      "Duty to police" seems up there with "requirement to maximize profits" in the realm of excuses to indulge in the sort of bad behavior that execs are fond of.
- dylan604 4y ago
  Yes, but once the lawsuit does come, which lets face it will come (at least a C&D), the dev(s) can have all of the tech trade rags/blogs/forums/etc paste it all over as news. Then, they'll become internet famous. At the end of the day, they probably know they'll have to change the name and are probably hoping for it just for the publicity. Let it live as long as it can, then ride the wave
  - mh- 4y ago
    > which lets face it will come I've had this project starred for at least 7 years, so perhaps Comcast legal has more of a sense of humor than we're giving them credit for.
juunpp 4y ago
Not a lawyer, but: https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/basics/what-trademark https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/basics/what-trademark "A common misconception is that having a trademark means you legally own a particular word or phrase and can prevent others from using it. However, you don’t have rights to the word or phrase in general, only to how that word or phrase is used with your specific goods or services. For example, let's say you use a logo as a trademark for your small woodworking business to identify and distinguish your goods or services from others in the woodworking field. This doesn't mean you can stop others from using a similar logo for non-woodworking related goods or services." Comcast the shitty network simulator should not be confused with Comcast the Internet Service Provider. Joke really is on them if they ever file a lawsuit.
- massysett 4y ago
  Follow the link on that page to “strong trademarks.” Comcast is a made-up, fanciful word, which is a much easier mark to defend.
- Hydraulix989 4y ago
  A network simulator and an ISP are easily confused according to legal standards. Even The Beatles' Apple Records had a case against Apple Computer in the early days of the company.
  - deleted 4y ago
    [deleted]
  - deleted 4y ago
    [deleted]
- SeanLuke 4y ago
  Trademarks are registered under specific categories of commerce. It's within those categories that trademark confusion can be argued. Comcast has like 50 trademarks (look them up on TESS), and they impact on everything from cable to internet services to hats and coffee mugs, basically anything the company makes or does. Let's take COMCAST BUSINESS as a random example. This trademark is registered for a variety of categories for which confusion can easily occur, but one stands out (italics mine): > "IC 009. US 021 023 026 036 038. G & S: Downloadable cloud-based software used to back up business data; downloadable cloud-based software used to share business data; downloadable cloud-based software used to send and manage secure documents; *downloadable cloud-based software used to manage, secure and protect computer networks;* downloadable cloud-based software used to create and transmit documents with electronic signatures; downloadable cloud-based software used to manage telephone systems; downloadable cloud-based software used to manage advanced telephone features; downloadable cloud-based software used to provide web conferencing; downloadable cloud-based software used to monitor business security systems; *downloadable cloud-based software used to detect and remediate computer viruses, worms, trojans, spyware, adware, malware and unauthorized data and programs;* high-definition multimedia interface cables; and Ethernet and wireless networking hardware and computer hardware and components thereof." Then there's this one: > "IC 038. US 100 101 104. G & S: *Providing high-speed access to the Internet, mobile networks, wired and wireless networks and other electronic communications networks;* telecommunication access services; telecommunications gateway services; wireless broadband communication services; wireless broadband telecommunications services; telecommunications services, namely, voice, video, and data transmissions provided through the use of cable television distribution facilities; telecommunication services, namely, transmission of voice, data, graphics, images, audio and video by means of wireless communication networks; *high-speed electronic data interchange services provided via modems, hybrid fiber coaxial cable networks, routers, and servers;* electronic, local and long distance transmission of voice, data, and graphics by means of cable, telephone, wireless, ISDN, and technologies; telephone communication services; providing voice communications services via cable, fiber optics, the internet, wired and wireless networks, mobile networks and other electronic communications networks; providing fiber optic network services; Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services; cable television services; cable television broadcasting services; cable television transmission services; providing access to telecommunication networks; provision of telecommunication access to video and audio content via video-on-demand, interactive television, pay per view, and pay television subscription services; video-on-demand transmission services; video conferencing services; wireless PBX services; cloud-based PBX services; streaming of video and audio material via the Internet, wired and wireless networks, mobile networks and other electronic communications networks; telecommunications services, namely, providing advanced calling features and leasing or rental of telecommunications equipment; leasing or rental of telecommunications equipment; computer network access services by means of a metro Ethernet; electronic transmission and streaming of digital media content for others via the Internet, wired and wireless networks, mobile networks and other electronic communications networks; cloud-based communications services in the nature of instant messaging, telephony, audio and video conferencing, screen sharing, file transfer, call control and management, voice mail, e-mail, SMS and facsimile services; and providing wireless hot spots." And that's just the first thing I picked out. It goes on like this. So, yeah. Comcast the network degradation simulation software almost unquestionably overlaps with Comcast's trademarks.

omarhaneef 4y ago

Me too! And my second brief thought was: maybe they forgot to turn it off for me? Wish I was kidding.

spacemanmatt 4y ago

Nah, this is for people who don't already have Comcast.