How do you check to see if a name has been copywritten?

December 13, 2005 1:26 PM

How do you check to see if a name has been copywritten?
posted by smoothie to Law & Government (15 answers total)

It's called a title search. And don't get caught out like Bush not doing a title search in Canada. Bush X, my ass.
posted by jon_kill at 1:27 PM on December 13, 2005

A name is not copyrightable (in the U.S.). Are you thinking of a trademark?
posted by exogenous at 1:31 PM on December 13, 2005

Keep in mind that a trademark search will only tell you if a trademark is *registered*. A viable, legally defensible trademark may already exist.
posted by acoutu at 1:33 PM on December 13, 2005

Also keep in mind that trademarks are only granted for a given industry, hence Apple Computers and Apple Records is not a trademark violation (though that hasn't stopped lawyers at Apple Records from filing suit after failed suit).
posted by scottreynen at 1:52 PM on December 13, 2005

Response by poster: The reason why I am asking is because I remember that Metallica sued Victoria Secret for having a brand lipstick name called 'Metallic Red' and they actually won the lawsuit.
posted by smoothie at 2:02 PM on December 13, 2005

scottreynen, they keep filing because they keep winning. I find it funny that Apple Computers continues to goad with "sosumi" on their homepage source, considering they've never won... heh.

1981 - Trademark dispute settled by way of an agreement between the two companies and a transfer of $80,000 to Apple Records.

1991 - $26.5 million settlement paid to Apple Records over 1986 Apple computer sound recording abilities.

2003 - New lawsuit filed by Apple Records over Apple Computer's iPod. Unlike the previous ones, this one actually has some (more) serious merit behind it (although not as much as I'd like).
posted by shepd at 2:05 PM on December 13, 2005

smoothie writes "The reason why I am asking is because I remember that Metallica sued Victoria Secret for having a brand lipstick name called 'Metallic Red' and they actually won the lawsuit."

I doubt this is true. There have been hoaxes about Metallica bringing frivolous lawsuits. This seems in the same vein.
posted by mr_roboto at 2:11 PM on December 13, 2005

EOnline is reputable source of information and I base all my decisions on EOnline
posted by holloway at 2:29 PM on December 13, 2005

Ah! I was searching for something with "metallic red"; no wonder I couldn't find that.
posted by mr_roboto at 2:35 PM on December 13, 2005

If you are thinking of trademarks you can perform a search of the Trademark Electronic Search System at the website of United States Patent and Trademark Office.
posted by FlamingBore at 3:13 PM on December 13, 2005

I thought a title search was something else, jon_kill -- like a real estate matter. The Bush (band, not politician) story is funny though.

I do know that there are people you can pay to do this. If you plan on doing anything significant with the mark, it's worth the money now rather than down the road, after you spend millions fighting lawsuits and rebranding. They can find marks similar to yours that I believe the online search wouldn't.
posted by SuperNova at 3:21 PM on December 13, 2005

These days, a google (or other) search is a really good place to start - if a name isn't on the Web, that's a pretty good sign that it doesn't exist. The next step would be to do a trademark search.

Starbucks recently won against a coffee shop called Sambucks. McDonalds was able to prevent the use of the mark McSleep by a motel chain because McSleep traded on the McDonald's mark reputation for a particular type of service (quick, inexpensive, standardized).

The issue is basically one of possible consumer confusion (and the presumption that confusion can benefit one seller and hurt the other). So don't play off a known brand ("swoogle" or "AltaZeta" for a search engine, for example) and expect to get away with it.
posted by WestCoaster at 3:44 PM on December 13, 2005

By the way, it's "copyrighted" not "copywritten"
posted by delmoi at 3:46 PM on December 13, 2005

Picking up on acoutu's comment, a US registered trademark search is wholly insufficient. Thomson & Thomson will provide a report of federal registrations, state registrations, and known common-law marks in use, for about $500. You should however see an attorney as the name you pick may not be legally defensible against infringement (i.e. if it is generic, descriptive, or contrary to public policy.)
posted by Saucy Intruder at 3:47 PM on December 13, 2005

holloway scribbled "EOnline is reputable source of information and I base all my decisions on EOnline"

Note that the losers didn't win their case against VS, it was settled out of court. And the name of the product was actually Metallica red otherwise they would have had no case.
posted by Mitheral at 5:12 PM on December 13, 2005