Please understand that a "trademark" is exactly that...a trade mark.
The word itself, DUB, is not being "trade marked" but their logo and how they use the word
in distinguishing their own branding is being "trade marked". There appears to be quite a bit of confusion over what a TradeMark is.
1. any name, symbol, figure, letter, word, or mark adopted and used by a manufacturer or merchant in order to designate his or her goods and to distinguish them from those manufactured or sold by others. A trademark is a proprietary term that is usually registered with the Patent and Trademark Office to assure its exclusive use by its owner.
2. a distinctive mark or feature particularly characteristic of or identified with a person or thing.
–verb (used with object)
3. to stamp or otherwise place a trademark designation upon.
4. to register the trademark of.
I highlighted the word "word" because 99.9999% of the time if it is already in the dictionary, the word as it stands
by itself can not become trademarked or registered or copyrighted.
We are talking about a word that is centuries old and no one can lay claim to it.
No, I am not an attorney but I have been an advertising and marketing executive for years and I know the ins and outs of these issues as we often branded a "TradeMark" for many clients. I worked very closely with not only our own corporate attorneys but corporate attorneys of international multibillion $$$ firms on copyright, trademark, service mark, and other matters regarding registering of patents, trademarks, service marks, and copyrights.
Google is a Trade Marked name and a Trade Marked word. That is an exception...the word Google did not exist until it was created. It is the very definition of itself that you will find in a dictionary;
Goo•gle (gōō'gəl) Pronunciation Key
A trademark used for an Internet search engine. This trademark often occurs in print as a verb, sometimes in lowercase
Winston is a brand of cigarettes from RJR Reynolds tobacco. Do you think Winston is a Trade Marked word? No...their brand is, their logo is, their packaging is.
Otherwise I have violated the law each and every time I write the address of Winston-Salem, NC and naming one of my cats Winston.
The word “coke” is not even a copyrighted word or a trademark as
the word itself. It has multiple meanings and uses. But if you reproduce the Coke or CocaCola logo without permission, then you have violated their copyrighted and registeted trademark.
Hells bells, if you think that "dub", "dubs", "dubbed" are trademarked or copyrighted words, then we are all liable and defendants for repeating the nursery rhyme, "Rub a dub dub, three men in a tub..." and if you are teaching your kids this rhyme, then you are aiding and abetting a criminal
