KNOWLEDGE OF TRADEMARK

If you are a writer, publisher, web site designer, site owner and if you own, claim to own, use or want to use intellectual property on the Internet, then you must have at least a short but functional knowledge of how the United States trademark, copyright and other laws, as well as various state laws, may apply to you.  There is an intimate relationship among your rights and the rights of others.  At any moment, you may be both a user of other’s protected materials and a creator of your own.  Both they and you deserve to have your intellectual property rights protected.
        In addition to the more traditional logos and designs that are the subject of trademark law, domain names are now also subject to being trademarked if they otherwise qualify as marks.  Indeed, the rules for what may and may not qualify for trademark status are not all that different except that the Internet presents additional issues.