What are the implications of trademark ownership regarding Open Source > software?
Less than you might think.[You register and use HappySoft as a trademark in a particular field for a particular piece of software, and publish statements like:]> HappySoft and the “smiling person” logo are trademarks of the HappySoft > Organization, and may not be used or duplicated without permission.You can say that — and might be well advised on self-interest grounds to aggressively enforce your trademark against anything that even looks remotely like an infringer (lest you lose it) — but that does not make it so, as a matter of law (the Federal Lanham Act, in the USA).By no means does all third-party use of your trademark constitute infringement, not even within your specific industry. A registered trademark entitles you to a monopoly over brand identity. That is, you’re entitled to bar only usage of your distinctive mark that incorrectly suggests your offering and endorsement of someone else’s goods or services (within your specific industry).It does not, for example, entitle you
Less than you might think. [You register and use HappySoft as a trademark in a particular field for a particular piece of software, and publish statements like:] > HappySoft and the “smiling person” logo are trademarks of the HappySoft > Organization, and may not be used or duplicated without permission. You can say that — and might be well advised on self-interest grounds to aggressively enforce your trademark against anything that even looks remotely like an infringer (lest you lose it) — but that does not make it so, as a matter of law (the Federal Lanham Act, in the USA). By no means does all third-party use of your trademark constitute infringement, not even within your specific industry. A registered trademark entitles you to a monopoly over brand identity. That is, you’re entitled to bar only usage of your distinctive mark that incorrectly suggests your offering and endorsement of someone else’s goods or services (within your specific industry). It does not, for example, entitle
