

Things to Know About Trademarks - dnetesn
http://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2015/06/16/things-to-know-about-trademarks/

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will_brown
This article does what any good article regarding an area of law should
do...leaves the reader walking away with more questions than answers, and this
is probably doubly applicable to trademark and IP law. In fact, anytime you
consult with an IP lawyer and their answer is anything more/less than _maybe_
that should raise a red flag.

In short:

1\. A registered TM is prima facia evidence of an enforceable TM and
ownership;

2\. The legal standard for violation of the TM is _likelihood of confusion by
the consumer_ (i.e. people are buying Fony intending to buy Sony). The article
mentions certain issues such as category/class of goods, but notes even that
is not determinative of actual infringement. Also, mentions the concept of
dilution of TM (the infringer is hawking a substandard product), but this is
not a requirement of the analysis, the infringing product could be superior
and still infringe the TM rights.

3\. At the end of the day the legal standard of _infringement_ is very
subjective, and while not directly mentioned, it is not only possible but
occurs regularly where different Courts will arrive at different conclusions
as to whether there is TM infringement. The one thing I disagree with is the
claim this is an unsettled area of law, certainly it is more subjective than I
like in my legal standard, but it is not unsettled.

