07-22-2006, 07:10 PM
It is definatly grounds for a court case (or now a domain dispute), and Yahoo or Google could probably win. Of course, their company size and importance is enough to justify them winning the case (alas, this is how it seems to work in the legal world), but I know that is not what you are asking.
The domains sound sufficiently familar to the original mark. This could be considered 'bad faith' if no disclaimer is issued on the site, as it might be deemed that it confuses visitors (yes, they arent always all that intelligent). It could also be considered as trademark dillution.
I know that it dosent really seem fair, and this has drawn a lot of criticism, but in the end, it's the policy which was adopted and so its how it works.
The domains sound sufficiently familar to the original mark. This could be considered 'bad faith' if no disclaimer is issued on the site, as it might be deemed that it confuses visitors (yes, they arent always all that intelligent). It could also be considered as trademark dillution.
I know that it dosent really seem fair, and this has drawn a lot of criticism, but in the end, it's the policy which was adopted and so its how it works.