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need a bit of legal advice


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email thread follows:

Dear Mr. Burr

We regret to inform you that you are currently using a trademarked name Prophetik.

We ask that you cease in using this trademark to avoid future prosecution.

We wish you the best in your music endeavors.

Regards,

Andrew Phillips

Prophetik Legal

P.O. Box 1106

Franklin, TN 37065

www.prophetik.com

TN original sustainable lifestyle fashion brand

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Andrew,

Thanks for the note.

I'd appreciate seeing the trademark paperwork for the name. Please mail me a copy at your earliest convenience.

BRAD

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It is registered so you can look it up

Most businesses do research before starting. This will Prophetik's 14th year trademarked protected.

Please cease using the name immediately.

This will be the last correspondence unless you do not cooperate.

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Andrew,

I'm a little confused about the issue here, as I don't "do business". I occasionally create music under the artist name "prophetik music", not Prophetik or any other variation. They are far enough apart that there's no overlap, as proved in the Bioware vs. Mojang AB case that occured over the use of the Elder Scrolls games and the upcoming independent game Scrolls by Mojang. Interestingly enough, those two are in the same category in the marketplace. On the contrary, we're not even in the same business. I make electronic music as a hobby. You recreate Civil War-era clothing in modern fashions. I don't think you have to worry about people mixing us up. There's no infringement here. I'm not stealing your customers. I am no more affiliated with you than a person in a chat room with the name ChevyLover1234 is associated with Detroit.

Since I sell nothing, buy nothing, and earn nothing from my website, and I am only ever credited under my actual name and not my artist's handle when creating for paid projects, consider that I have stopped "doing business" under this name. I am willing to sell you the domain if you want, but otherwise I'll continue using it since there's nothing infringing about it.

This will be the last correspondence, since I have cooperated with your efforts.

BRAD

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Alright if you continue using our trademarked name we will have no other choice than to pursue action.

Unfortunately the law does not allow us to make our own interpretations.

We have the trademark on the name Prophetik and also Prophetik Music.

It should not be an issue in ceasing use. The alternative is costly.

If you decide to continue, please send me your legal counsel's information.

Andreas

---------------

Unfortunately, while found reg. number 2830709 in the United States Patent and Trademark Office for your clothing company (Prophetik), I was unable to find a trademark for "prophetik music" or any variation thereof.

As per the law, since I cannot find your trademark data - live or dead - in the database available to me, you are required to either present me with your current registration number and serial number for the trademark on "prophetik music", or stop harassing me. If you are actually a real lawyer (and at this point, I'm fairly convinced you're not, as no real lawyer would stoop to such underhanded tactics as "The alternative is costly", they'd just send a scary mail and be done with it after getting my address information from the domain registrar), you'd already know to do this, and have done it. You also wouldn't have misspelled "All right", as appearances for lawyers are everything. Your appearance is that of a Nigerian scammer.

As I said before, I am not using your name for anything in the slightest. I earn nothing and gain nothing from the website - which has a different termination AND a different spelling from your base website - and it hasn't been updated in ages. I use your name as a casual handle on an internet forum, and as a username in a few games. I never began using your name in a business sense, therefore I cannot cease use. I'd be interested in what your description of ceasing use is, since clearly I don't understand you. If you wish me to put a notice on my front page stating that I am not affiliated with your company, I think that's pretty fair. If you want me to just take the website offline...sorry, that won't be happening. You're welcome to buy the site from me, but I won't remove it just because a poorly worded email tried to order me to.

Feel free to contact me directly through my cell phone number. It's registered with the domain registrar. I've updated it just in case.

BRAD

-----------------

now.

i know that bioware vs. mojang got dealt with before trial. i brought it up because this guy seems like a moron and i think he's a failtrain. i also know that my artist name here is prophetik, but he's not asking about OCR. he's asking about my site, which is clearly marked as the music of Brad Burr, not the music of prophetik. the word prophetik never appears without the word music after it.

do i need to be worried about this? there's a lot of inconsistencies here that make me think that the answer is no, but i figured i'd let you guys who actually know what you're talking about tell me whether or not i need to worry.

thanks =)

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i know that bioware vs. mojang

Wasn't it Bethesda vs. Mojang?

Anyway, I don't know a whole lot about the subject, but for uneducated noobs like me, there's Wikipedia!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trademark_infringement

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.
I think you're in the clear, considering the two "products or services" in question are nothing alike. Don't quote me on that though; that's just the gist I'm getting from this.

If anything, forwarding him off to a lawyer you know (if you know one) as your "legal counsel" and letting him school this guy might get him off your back.

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Wasn't it Bethesda vs. Mojang?

...and there goes the joke, right out the window. hence why i said he was a goon who wouldn't look it up =)

Why is this guy "Andrew" in one email and "Andreas" in another?

it's the same person, and part of why i think it's a scam.

anyways, i think dusk nailed it. not the same industry, so not the same issue. where's wacky when i need an asshole lawyer to piss on someone?

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Don't be so quick to assume you're not in danger of court action. First of all, if they DO decide to take you to court, you're going to have to spend a lot of time and money defending yourself, even if you're in the right. Secondly, trademark infringement is not just about being in the same industry. Distinctiveness plays a large part in determining infringement:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trademark_distinctiveness

For example, the word "penguin" is not as distinctive as "prophetik". A company called Penguin making refrigerators would have a harder time proving infringement by a company called Penguin making cell phones. On the other hand, since prophetik is a made-up (fanciful) word, it is easier to protect, since it's more unique. This isn't a full legal explanation obviously but this is a very important fact that you need to consider.

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well i had a look for a trademark search and there was 2 marked under the word "Prophetik"

http://tess2.uspto.gov/bin/showfield?f=doc&state=4004:v155gv.2.2

The second one is for general entertainment, But it was abandoned and officially a dead trademark.

These guys don't have a leg to stand on seeing as you are not officially selling anything under the trademark prophetik.

But you might want to read up on this here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_use_(U.S._trademark_law)

as well as: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nominative_use

to see if this could effect you.

Good luck bro.

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well i had a look for a trademark search and there was 2 marked under the word "Prophetik"

http://tess2.uspto.gov/bin/showfield?f=doc&state=4004:v155gv.2.2

The second one is for general entertainment, But it was abandoned and officially a dead trademark.

These guys don't have a leg to stand on seeing as you are not officially selling anything under the trademark prophetik.

yeah, and he says straight out that he's got "prophetik music", which isn't in there at all.

i contacted a lawyer buddy of mine to see if he had any ideas, or knew someone who'd give me some basic info for cheap. we'll see what happens.

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Do you sell your own music, Brad?

I checked your website, and only found that you're selling music you composed for video games. Do you sell it under the name "prophetik music" or under your real name? Or is the company that created the VG selling the music via its website?

I don't remember having heard that using a moniker that's the same than a company is forbidden (safe if you're doing illegal stuff or thrashing the name of the said company).

Best of luck with that problem, it's a hard one.

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Do you sell your own music, Brad?

I checked your website, and only found that you're selling music you composed for video games. Do you sell it under the name "prophetik music" or under your real name? Or is the company that created the VG selling the music via its website?

I don't remember having heard that using a moniker that's the same than a company is forbidden (safe if you're doing illegal stuff or thrashing the name of the said company).

Best of luck with that problem, it's a hard one.

i use the name Brad Burr, but i don't directly sell anything through the site anyways. the site's primarily for hosting my stuff more than anything -_-

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"The alternative is costly. Resistance is futile." Seriously, read his messages in the way of Locutus. It's hilarious.

Either this guy/these guys(Andrew/Andreas) are the best trolls ever or have no idea how to discuss matters in a civilized manner, or even how to articulate emails in a standardized manner. Might be different there in America, though, but those messages just don't feel like they've been sent by a real company advocate or any kind of authority figure.

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How fast can you trademark "prophetik Music"?

Also, isn't it against the law to represent yourself as a lawyer or something of the legal department if you're not actually a lawyer? I thought I heard that a long time ago, but I'm not sure if thats real or not.

Further curiosity - why would they already have the trademark to Prophetik Music? That's a very strange thing for a medium-sized clothing company to want to secure for themselves.

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It might not be a lawyer; it could just be the owner (or a representative of) the company. That doesn't mean they can't potentially make Brad's life miserable, or that they wouldn't even win if they go to court. This stuff can get real nasty real fast.

They don't teach how to write a proper message in terms of articulation, construction and linguistic form in schools? Or are formal messages not required even if you are a representative of a company?

Maybe I'm being a little sarcastic, and what do I know, but I just can't get over a thought that a real authority figure would send such messages. One would think that people in their position would act maturely and ensure that their messages are professional and civilized to avoid misunderstandings and people thinking they're full of shit.

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They don't teach how to write a proper message in terms of articulation, construction and linguistic form in schools? Or are formal messages not required even if you are a representative of a company?

Maybe I'm being a little sarcastic, and what do I know, but I just can't get over a thought that a real authority figure would send such messages. One would think that people in their position would act maturely and ensure that their messages are professional and civilized to avoid misunderstandings and people thinking they're full of shit.

There's no education requirement to start a business. Furthermore, just graduating from high school, or even college, doesn't ensure your linguistic or writing competency, sadly.

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> Mr Bradley

>

> Our legal representative has informed me of your website using our trademarked name " Prophetik"

>

> We believe in peaceful solutions and I hope you will cease using our name.

>

> In case there is confusion we have the trademarked name which includes both film and music for we have produced in both categories. We our a lifestyle brand.

>

> I understand your offense to our attorney but understand he is in fact serious and this will escalate if not taking care of immediately.

>

> I hope you can respect our Trademark which we have spent over 15 years building and protecting and no you are not the first one who has attempted to use our name and we have had to use legal means to protect. As you can understand if someone took your music idea or song.

>

> please send us your mailing address and a letter will be sent out from out attorney if you desire to fight this.

> Otherwise I hope you will stop using the trademark immediately. No one can stop you from using prophetic just FYI.

>

> Kind regards

>

> Jon Ward

>

> Prophetik

> P.O. Box 1106

> Franklin, TN 37065

> www.prophetik.com

>

> TN original sustainable lifestyle fashion brand

more derp. this looks even weirder. like, look at the email address - thevibeshowroom@prophetik.com. but, the name shows up as "tbevibeshowroom".

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