Creating a blog with a name already used by a small business?
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Hello,
I am creating a blog for the first time. I would like to write about a social issue that I am passionate about and I came up with a blog name that captures it really well. I found online that there is a small business (an agency) already operating under this name and holding the .com domain for it. I would like to create a custom domain for the blog (maybe the .org, .net or .io version) and host it on WordPress. Are there any legal (copyright, trademark, etc) issues that prevent me from doing so or could be a problem in the future? I really like the name and would like to use it but do not want to get in any legal trouble now or down the line.
Thanks!
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Check out http://www.uspto.gov/ is the OFFICIAL website for patents and trademarks. On that website, you can search for trademarks, and even see ones that are “pending”. There is also a section on trademark availability vs. “.com” address registration. They say it is not the same thing: http://tess2.uspto.gov/webaka/html/warning.htm#REFUSE
from https://en.forums.wordpress.com/topic/i-am-being-threatened-for-infringement?replies=10 -
So, basically, if they don’t have a trademark registered, you can use the whatever.wordpress.com domain no problem. Or even the whatever.net or whatever.me if you want a custom domain.
A friend of mine with a small media agency was threatened by a PR company because her company has the same name as them, although it’s in a different field. The best human rights lawyer in the country took her case on pro bono and they backed waaaaaay off. They even closed their business shortly afterwards.
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