Where do I stand?

[clasione]

SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION INC.
Number: C2421743 Date Filed: 6/26/2002 Status: active
Jurisdiction: California
Address
6183 PASEO DEL NORTE STE 250
CARLSBAD, CA 92009
Agent for Service of Process
GARRY GRANT
2408A SACADA CIR
CARLSBAD, CA 92009
www.seoinc.com

This company has requested I pull down my flyer page http://www.seoincorporated.com
via telephone, claiming I am violating trademark laws... I am waiting to hear from my attorney, but he is not a domain specialist...

NO TRADEMARK FOUND IN US TRADE MARK SEARCH

[payperclick.biz]

If you just forward the domain to http://www.searchen.com/ there is ZERO they can do! but as long as you have SEO INCORPORATED on your front page you are in threat of legal action.

They can argue their users will mistake you for them! since you are linking most links to shearchen, why dont you just forward the whole thing to searchen? without the front page?

[clasione]

If you just forward the domain to http://www.searchen.com/ there is ZERO they can do! but as long as you have SEO INCORPORATED on your front page you are in threat of legal action.

They can argue their users will mistake you for them! since you are linking most links to shearchen, why dont you just forward the whole thing to searchen? without the front page?

Advice taken while I speak with my attorney...

Thank you very much for your insight Csite....
I appreciate your opinion...

[jberryhill]

Advice taken while I speak with my attorney..

Changing anything after they complain, and before you've been advised, is in general a bad move. They will claim you have effectively admitted you've done something wrong, and will use your attempt to "cover it up" against you.

Astoundingly bad move.

[clasione]

Changing anything after they complain, and before you've been advised, is in general a bad move. They will claim you have effectively admitted you've done something wrong, and will use your attempt to "cover it up" against you.

Astoundingly bad move.

I didn't do anything wrong, the owner gve me a courtisy call as he claimed to notify us that people are finding it and thinking it is them....

As a courtisy, I will forward the domain....

[jberryhill]

http://www.arbforum.com/domains/decisions/192249.htm

[Yoshiki]

If they can prove in a court that indeed "people are finding it and thinking it is them", you will be in a rather awkward position.

Is your business legally incorporated as your domain says?

people are finding it and thinking it is them....
As a courtisy, I will forward the domain....

[clasione]

If they can prove in a court that indeed "people are finding it and thinking it is them", you will be in a rather awkward position.

Is your business legally incorporated as your domain says?

Excellent link..... The only thing I do not agree with in that court document since it differs for me is:

I AM in the SEO (search engine optimization) field and my company is indeed Incorporated..... So I believe this could be something of a gray area....

I do have legitamet reason to own such a name, in my opinion....

Also,
Searchen Networks appears number #1 in Google for "SEO PROFESSIONAL"

and does help clarify that we are in the SEO Business.

[jberryhill]

I hope you follow up with your attorney, and that he or she tells you that you shouldn't be posting the details of your situation here. Do you think that your prospective opponent uses some other internet?

[clasione]

I hope you follow up with your attorney, and that he or she tells you that you shouldn't be posting the details of your situation here. Do you think that your prospective opponent uses some other internet?

He's on it already.....

I'm not too worried about it....
It's mine and I'm not doing anything wrong with it....

We'll see what happens....

[Sarcle]

I concur you are kind of self incriminating yourself.

[DaddyHalbucks]

Trademark law centers around avoiding consumer confusion as to the source of goods and services. Keep that in mind at all times.

[Acro]

Just forward it to buns.com
They seem to be after your dough...

[Sarcle]

It is a legimate company of a domain he uses, he has admitted using their name to get hits on his site....He should talk to a lawer before he says anything else.

[jberryhill]

Just to clarify why the "CouponsInc.com" UDRP decision is interesting...

1. SEO Inc. had their federal trademark registration application no. 78/323680 refused for the following reason:

"The examining attorney refuses registration under Trademark Act Section 2(d), 15 U.S.C. §1052(d), because the applicant’s mark, when used on or in connection with the identified goods/services, so resembles the marks in U.S. Registration Nos. 2639810 AND 2734898 as to be likely to cause confusion, or to cause mistake, or to deceive. TMEP §§1207.01 et seq. See the enclosed registrations."

Okay, so from that you know there were some prior marks incorporating "SEO".

2. Looking at Reg No. 2734898 for "SEO LOGIC", you see that it has the following notation:

"Disclaimer NO CLAIM IS MADE TO THE EXCLUSIVE RIGHT TO USE "SEO" APART FROM THE MARK AS SHOWN"

Now, why does it have that notation....

3. During prosecution of the application for Reg No. 2734898, an Examiner's Amendment was made, stating:


"In light of the fact that the acronym “SEO” is commonly used in the applicant’s industry for “search engine optimization,” the following disclaimer will be made of record:

No claim is made to the exclusive right to use “SEO” apart from the mark as shown."

I am not going to state any conclusions based on those facts, and I am certainly not aware of whatever other facts might be relevant to your particular situation, but I cannot emphasize to you strongly enough that when you consult your attorney (and I am not your attorney) on an issue, then keep your mouth shut.

And...

NO TRADEMARK FOUND IN US TRADE MARK SEARCH

...whomever conducted that search and drew that conclusion without noting the other facts above, needs to be shot.

[clasione]

Well, I atleast need to thank you for looking over those documents, I couldn't find anything while doing a search with the US patent search... Came up with alot of other things non-relavent mostly asian apps...

So it sounds like "SEO" is very difficult to patent/trademark since it is an abbreviation of an entire industry....

If that is so, i did kind of suspect that could be possible....

[Dave Zan]

And if your current attorney isn't that knowledgeable on handling trademark -
domain name disputes, then you'd probably better retain one who does handle
this for a living.

[jberryhill]

Came up with alot of other things non-relavent mostly asian apps...

Uhhhhmmmm... you were searching patents, I gather.

In USPTO, the "P" stands for "patent" and the "T" stands for trademark.

Let me put it to you this way......

The next time you feel like unwinding with a cigar and a beer, please, don't go anywhere near the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.

Really, just trust me on that one, okay?

[clasione]

Uhhhhmmmm... you were searching patents, I gather.

In USPTO, the "P" stands for "patent" and the "T" stands for trademark.

Let me put it to you this way......

The next time you feel like unwinding with a cigar and a beer, please, don't go anywhere near the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.

Really, just trust me on that one, okay?

This is what I was checking:
http://www.uspto.gov/

[gworld]

Look here:

SEO INC trademark application

it is marked as ABANDONED.