Groundspeak logo

[+hobster]

Has Groundspeak ever sued anyone over the commercial use of their logo?

[Deceangi]

I'm aware that Groundspeak do make contact with Ebay and request items are withdrawn from sale, if the GC Logo is used on items for sale on there. Ebay do comply with the request as it's a Registered Trade Mark.

 

In other cases they will send a cease and desist Email/Letter, which is usually affective.

 

See the Knowledge Book or Geocaching Logo Usage and Trademark Information

 

For more information on the commercial and Non commercial usage of the Logo. Please remember Groundspeak do have their own Corporate Lawyer on staff.

Edited June 13, 2010 by Deceangi

[+AuntieWeasel]

What they don't seem to have on staff, sadly, is someone to man that email address and answer questions. I tried to get some clarification on word marks (if I could use "TB" or "bug" on a product, for example). No response.

 

I'm finding companies in general very bad about answering logo and trademark questions, even when they give an address specifically for those questions. The Royal Mint, for example, is very explicit about protecting the copyright on coin designs since decimalization, but never answered my query about using pre-decimal coin designs on commercial products.

 

I guess they figure a non-response will scare away the faint of heart, a cease-and-desist will scare away the firm of heart and a lawsuit will scare the rest. Me, I'm firmly in the "faint of heart" category.

[+sTeamTraen]

As far as I know, Groundspeak has never sued anybody. It really wouldn't be in their interest unless somebody decided to go into large-scale production of knock-off merchandise.

I guess they figure a non-response will scare away the faint of heart, a cease-and-desist will scare away the firm of heart and a lawsuit will scare the rest.

I suspect that you are right. That's probably how I would work. Your enquiry was presumably by e-mail, so I would be able to deny ever having received it, but once I've replied, I'm committed. I can't conceive of a benefit to a company to reveal where they think that the limits of their intellectual property lie; it would be an open invitation to move your tanks to within half an inch of their lawn. If that involves upsetting one customer, so be it.

 

Personally, I'd not be very happy if I owned the trademark on "Travel Bug" and I knew that someone was making a product using half of that name, or its most common abbreviation. But maybe your message to Groundspeak didn't include a proposal for what their cut of the action should be.

 

FWIW, here (apologies to the moderators if this is considered as a misplaced advertisement for the object in question) is an example of how to use the "TB" idea while keeping on the right side of Groundspeak. As far as the Frog is concerned, this item is a coin, and presumably they make a buck fifty for the tracking number on every one. For French people, it's a travel bug in French. (The first word of the name is pronounced "Tee", incidentally. )

[+AuntieWeasel]

Huh. You and I joined the forums on the same day, sTeamTraen.

 

I don't know...you could argue I advertise their product and help sell trackable tags (you have to buy a tag from Groundspeak to use the number in other places). It's hard to see how that harms them more than it helps them. Or that they aren't harmed if I use the expression "trackable" but they are harmed if I describe it as a "bug."