Facebook now allows users to create their own homepage (adress: www.facebook.com/name). Great of course for who likes to share private issues with the rest of the world. But for trademark owners it implies a new risk: anyone can claim a homepage in the name of somebody else's trademark. Trademark owners should want to prevent this. The good news: this is possible. Facebook provides an online form to trademark owners, to reserve the mark on Facebook. Third parties will not be able to register in the name of this trademark anymore. Trademark owners might, of course, react against unauthorized use of the trademark. But this is not always successful, and may be costly. The best suggestion seems: just register. This is like domain names that look too much alike yours - much easier to register them in advance, than to react when the harm has been done. Maarten Haak
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office Emerald House Jozef Israëlskade 48-G Amsterdam, the Netherlands t +31 (0)20 - 305 3066 www.hoogenhaak.nl |
post PO Box 76780 1070 KB Amsterdam e info@hoogenhaak.nl f +31 (0)20 - 305 3069 chamber of commerce 34314579 |
Facebook now allows users to create their own homepage (adress: www.facebook.com/name). Great of course for who likes to share private issues with the rest of the world. But for trademark owners it implies a new risk: anyone can claim a homepage in the name of somebody else's trademark. Trademark owners should want to prevent this. The good news: this is possible. Facebook provides an online form to trademark owners, to reserve the mark on Facebook. Third parties will not be able to register in the name of this trademark anymore. Trademark owners might, of course, react against unauthorized use of the trademark. But this is not always successful, and may be costly. The best suggestion seems: just register. This is like domain names that look too much alike yours - much easier to register them in advance, than to react when the harm has been done. Maarten Haak