There are all kinds of cybersquatting. There are several types of registered trademarks in the name of celebrities: first, others register trademarks with the real name, stage name and pen name of celebrities. Second, others registered trademarks with homonyms or inflections of celebrity names. Third, others use the name of a deceased celebrity to apply for trademark registration. Although it is not prohibited by law, from the perspective of public order and good customs and unfair competition, this application should be restricted or prohibited. Fourth, others have the same name as celebrities and register trademarks in their own names. In this case, others have the right to legally use this name. Even if there is subjective malice, it is difficult to identify its behavior as infringement. In order to protect the public interest, they can be required to attach clarification marks unrelated to celebrities in the publicity process to avoid confusion.
Cybersquatting is not a legal concept, and the difference between cybersquatting and proper registration mainly lies in whether the registrant has subjective malice when registering a trademark. The legal requirements for judging the behavior of registered trademarks should include the following points:
1. The time to apply for registration is at or after the celebrity has just become famous. When someone becomes a hot spot in a certain period of time or because of an event, others quickly register a trademark with his name, that is, the time to apply for trademark registration is at the beginning of his fame or after he has become a celebrity, at this time his speculative psychology and subjective malice are more obvious.
2. The name registered as a trademark has a high reputation. Generally speaking, whether it has a high reputation depends on its publicity media, geographical scope, awards and honors. For some people who are not well-known or celebrities in a small range, it is not appropriate to exclude the right of others to register trademarks, otherwise it will constitute an obstacle to the freedom of trademark registration.
3. The applicant is not associated with the registered trademark. Unrelated registration can be used as one of the factors to identify "cybersquatting". If the applicant is associated with the registered name and trademark, and its registration behavior is justified, it should not be considered as "cybersquatting".
The above is an introduction to the elements of judging trademark cybersquatting. Trademark registration is not desirable, and the examiner of the State Trademark Office does not recognize it and it is invalid.