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Posted to dev@uima.apache.org by "Martin Kotulla (SoftMaker)" <ma...@softmaker.de> on 2013/03/12 17:00:36 UTC
Violation of our registered trademark "TextMaker" - THIS NEEDS YOUR
IMMEDIATE ATTENTION
Sirs:
SoftMaker Software GmbH, which I represent, is a German corporation that
owns the registered trademark "TextMaker".
This trademark is registered in many jurisdictions, such as:
Germany: Registration number 39931114
European Union: Registration number 004014502
International (WIPO) trademark: Registration number 851919
United States: Registration number 3104183
The trademark is also registered in India, Japan, and other countries.
The trademark is registered in the relevant international classes 9, 16,
42, for, among others, computer software and development of computer
software.
The name "TextMaker" has also been in continuous use since 1987 to
designate our word processing application that we offer for mobile and
desktop operating systems:
http://softmaker.com/english/ofwtm_en.htm
http://softmaker.com/english/ofltm_en.htm
http://softmaker.com/english/ofctm_en.htm
http://softmaker.com/english/ofptm_en.htm
http://softmaker.com/english/ofatm_en.htm
By accident, we found this page today:
http://uima.apache.org/textmarker.html
In it and related pages on the Apache Software Foundation web site, you
promote an open-source software product called "TextMarker".
As you will readily agree, your product name "TextMarker" is confusingly
similar to our "TextMaker" trademark and product name. It thereby
infringes upon our valuable registered trademark.
We therefore ask that you immediately cease using the term "TextMarker"
to designate this or other software products. Unless we receive evidence
to the contrary, we are willing to believe that your trademark violation
was unintentional and caused only by insufficient trademark research.
Please review this issue immediately and confirm in writing that you
will stop using the "TextMarker" trademark immediately. We would then
consider this dispute resolved.
I expect to receive such confirmation no later than:
Friday, 15 March 2013, either by e-mail or by fax to +49-911-303796.
If on the other hand this issue cannot be resolved amicably, we will
seek a court's decision in any of the countries in which our trademark
is registered to defend our valuable intellectual property.
I wish you well with your project, but under a name that is not
confusingly similar to our registered trademark.
Best regards,
Martin Kotulla
Geschäftsführer (CEO)
SoftMaker Software GmbH
Re: Violation of our registered trademark "TextMaker" - THIS NEEDS
YOUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION
Posted by Marshall Schor <ms...@schor.com>.
I'll work on a response with the trademark people.
-Marshall
On 3/12/2013 12:00 PM, Martin Kotulla (SoftMaker) wrote:
> Sirs:
>
> SoftMaker Software GmbH, which I represent, is a German corporation that owns
> the registered trademark "TextMaker".
>
> This trademark is registered in many jurisdictions, such as:
>
> Germany: Registration number 39931114
> European Union: Registration number 004014502
> International (WIPO) trademark: Registration number 851919
> United States: Registration number 3104183
>
> The trademark is also registered in India, Japan, and other countries.
>
> The trademark is registered in the relevant international classes 9, 16, 42,
> for, among others, computer software and development of computer software.
>
> The name "TextMaker" has also been in continuous use since 1987 to designate
> our word processing application that we offer for mobile and desktop operating
> systems:
>
> http://softmaker.com/english/ofwtm_en.htm
> http://softmaker.com/english/ofltm_en.htm
> http://softmaker.com/english/ofctm_en.htm
> http://softmaker.com/english/ofptm_en.htm
> http://softmaker.com/english/ofatm_en.htm
>
> By accident, we found this page today:
>
> http://uima.apache.org/textmarker.html
>
> In it and related pages on the Apache Software Foundation web site, you
> promote an open-source software product called "TextMarker".
>
> As you will readily agree, your product name "TextMarker" is confusingly
> similar to our "TextMaker" trademark and product name. It thereby infringes
> upon our valuable registered trademark.
>
> We therefore ask that you immediately cease using the term "TextMarker" to
> designate this or other software products. Unless we receive evidence to the
> contrary, we are willing to believe that your trademark violation was
> unintentional and caused only by insufficient trademark research.
>
> Please review this issue immediately and confirm in writing that you will stop
> using the "TextMarker" trademark immediately. We would then consider this
> dispute resolved.
>
> I expect to receive such confirmation no later than:
>
> Friday, 15 March 2013, either by e-mail or by fax to +49-911-303796.
>
> If on the other hand this issue cannot be resolved amicably, we will seek a
> court's decision in any of the countries in which our trademark is registered
> to defend our valuable intellectual property.
>
> I wish you well with your project, but under a name that is not confusingly
> similar to our registered trademark.
>
> Best regards,
>
> Martin Kotulla
> Geschäftsführer (CEO)
> SoftMaker Software GmbH
>
>
Re: Violation of our registered trademark "TextMaker" - THIS NEEDS
YOUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION
Posted by "Jochen L. Leidner" <le...@acm.org>.
Martin,
Note that trademark infringement can only happen between two *commercial*
entities:
Cf. e.g. http://chillingeffects.org/trademark/faq.cgi#QID653
(The nature of the Apache license hardly qualifies, since nowhere is there
a request for money.)
In addition, the two brand names need to be referring to the same type of
product (an office product is unlikely to be confused by a user with a
library for software developers).
I'm not a lawyer (and I do not have any affiliation with either
Apache/IBM/UIMA) but I don't see either of these applying here. In any
case, you would have to carefully weigh the benefit of legal action versus
loss of goodwill by the developer/Linux community.
Just my two cents' worth from a happy UIMA user, who works a lot with
intellectual property rights in his day job.
Regards
Jochen
On 12 March 2013 17:00, Martin Kotulla (SoftMaker) <ma...@softmaker.de>wrote:
> SoftMaker Software GmbH, which I represent, is a German corporation that
> owns the registered trademark "TextMaker".
>
--
Dr. Jochen L. Leidner
E-Mail: leidner@acm.org
Web: http://www.jochenleidner.com
Re: Fwd: Violation of our registered trademark "TextMaker" - THIS
NEEDS YOUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION
Posted by Shane Curcuru <as...@shanecurcuru.org>.
Dear Martin:
We have received your email on this trademark matter and are working
with counsel to review these claims and to draft a more detailed reply.
We take trademark issues seriously at the Apache Software Foundation,
where as a non-profit charitable organization our mission is to provide
software for the public good, through our over 140+ widely used Apache
TM software projects.
As a volunteer-led non-profit, we find a deadline only three days away
to be unreasonable, and will ensure counsel has a detailed reply within
a week or so.
Please address all further communications about any Apache Software
Foundation project brands to trademarks@apache.org, as noted in our
formal trademark policy document:
http://www.apache.org/foundation/marks/
- Shane Curcuru
VP, Brand Management
The Apache Software Foundation
http://www.apache.org/foundation/
(bcc: dev@uima.apache.org for awareness that this is being addressed)
> -------- Original Message --------
> Subject: Violation of our registered trademark "TextMaker" - THIS NEEDS
> YOUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION
> Date: Tue, 12 Mar 2013 17:00:36 +0100
> From: Martin Kotulla (SoftMaker) <ma...@softmaker.de>
> Reply-To: dev@uima.apache.org
> To: dev@uima.apache.org
> CC: legal@softmaker.de <le...@softmaker.de>
>
>
>
> Sirs:
>
> SoftMaker Software GmbH, which I represent, is a German corporation that
> owns the registered trademark "TextMaker".
>
> This trademark is registered in many jurisdictions, such as:
>
> Germany: Registration number 39931114
> European Union: Registration number 004014502
> International (WIPO) trademark: Registration number 851919
> United States: Registration number 3104183
>
> The trademark is also registered in India, Japan, and other countries.
>
> The trademark is registered in the relevant international classes 9, 16,
> 42, for, among others, computer software and development of computer
> software.
>
> The name "TextMaker" has also been in continuous use since 1987 to
> designate our word processing application that we offer for mobile and
> desktop operating systems:
>
> http://softmaker.com/english/ofwtm_en.htm
> http://softmaker.com/english/ofltm_en.htm
> http://softmaker.com/english/ofctm_en.htm
> http://softmaker.com/english/ofptm_en.htm
> http://softmaker.com/english/ofatm_en.htm
>
> By accident, we found this page today:
>
> http://uima.apache.org/textmarker.html
>
> In it and related pages on the Apache Software Foundation web site, you
> promote an open-source software product called "TextMarker".
>
> As you will readily agree, your product name "TextMarker" is confusingly
> similar to our "TextMaker" trademark and product name. It thereby
> infringes upon our valuable registered trademark.
>
> We therefore ask that you immediately cease using the term "TextMarker"
> to designate this or other software products. Unless we receive evidence
> to the contrary, we are willing to believe that your trademark violation
> was unintentional and caused only by insufficient trademark research.
>
> Please review this issue immediately and confirm in writing that you
> will stop using the "TextMarker" trademark immediately. We would then
> consider this dispute resolved.
>
> I expect to receive such confirmation no later than:
>
> Friday, 15 March 2013, either by e-mail or by fax to +49-911-303796.
>
> If on the other hand this issue cannot be resolved amicably, we will
> seek a court's decision in any of the countries in which our trademark
> is registered to defend our valuable intellectual property.
>
> I wish you well with your project, but under a name that is not
> confusingly similar to our registered trademark.
>
> Best regards,
>
> Martin Kotulla
> Geschäftsführer (CEO)
> SoftMaker Software GmbH