[asterisk-biz] Bunch of asterisk-related domains for sale

[Matthew Rubenstein]

	You're pitching domains that are "asterisk related", which, as nothing
but names, means they have the word "asterisk" in them. You're pitching
them to people on the "asterisk-biz" list, "Commercial and
Business-Oriented Asterisk Discussion". Your offerings clearly infringe
the Digium trademark on "Asterisk" used to identify Digium's "Asterisk"
product.

	Under the Lanham Act, which your copy/paste operation evidently failed
to fully parse, if a mark holder fails to "vigorously pursue" action
against an infringer who's diluting the mark as used under the held
trademark, the original mark holder can lose claim to exclusive use of
the mark.

	Understanding trademark requires more than hitting Wikipedia. But then
you might not have registered those domains intending to make money
infringing someone's trademark.


On Sun, 2008-01-06 at 13:39 -0800, Justin Newman wrote:
> [Most of the domains are asterisk-related, like I said, but not asterisk infringing--most do not have the word Asterisk in the them, but none-the-less...]
> 
> Thanks for your feedback, but Digium does not own the word "Asterisk". Simply using the word "Asterisk" within a domain name or another product name does not necessarily mislead. They may send you a cease and desist, but that doesn't mean they have protection. Also, they aren't forced by law to protect their trademark. That is up to them.
> 
> Trademark infringement is a violation of the exclusive rights attaching to a trademark without the authorization of the trademark owner or any licensees (provided that such authorization was within the scope of the license). Infringement may occur when one party, the "infringer", uses a trademark which is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark owned by another party, in relation to products or services which are identical or similar to the products or services which the registration covers. An owner of a trademark may commence legal proceedings against a party which infringes its registration. 
> 
> Where the respective marks or products or services are not identical, similarity will generally be assessed by reference to whether there is a likelihood of confusion that consumers will believe the products or services originated from the trademark owner. If the respective marks and products or services are entirely dissimilar, trademark infringement may still be established if the registered mark is well known pursuant to the Paris Convention. In the United States, a cause of action for use of a mark for such dissimilar services is called trademark dilution. 
> 
> ----- Original Message ---- 
> From: randulo <spamsucks2005 at gmail.com> 
> To: Justin Newman <jnewman at newmantelecom.com>; Commercial and Business-Oriented Asterisk Discussion <asterisk-biz at lists.digium.com> 
> Sent: Saturday, January 5, 2008 11:04:21 PM 
> Subject: Re: [asterisk-biz] Bunch of asterisk-related domains for sale 
> 
> On Jan 6, 2008 2:14 AM, Justin Newman <nt_jnewman at yahoo.com> wrote: 
> > 
> > I have a bunch of asterisk-related domains for sale, if anyone is 
> > interested. Contact me off list... 
> 
> I would remind everyone that asterisk is a registered trademark and 
> that using it in a voip related context may result in legal issues 
> Digium might be forced by law to actively pursue. I own a couple of 
> domains as well, but I've let them expire because of that issue. If 
> someone wants to buy such domains, even for $8 each, consult a lawyer 
> about your plans first or contact Digium for permission.
> 
> 
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(C) Matthew Rubenstein