As DJ points out...
So, Billy - actually, what you meant to say is that you've trademarked some graphics? And a phrase "LEROC PURE DANCE ADDICTION" that, how should we put it, "borrows heavily" from a certain other organisation? The same organisation that uses a similar font to those graphics mentioned above.
I have no idea what you're trying to achieve here. Care to explain a bit?
Cracking little article, that.Must've taken the odd spare minute or two over many years to come up with such wisdom.
Really?™
I'm sorry. I've been trying hard not to laugh throughout this ridiculous thread. Andy - if you feel the need to pay anyone for the use of the word "LeRoc" you can pay me. I've got as much right to charge you as Billy does. I'll even start putting in ™s in my posts again, if it makes you happy.
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Leroc written all over a venue normally puts me off as, in my experiance, they are normally iffy. Not saying this is the case everywhere, but certainly at the leroc places I have been to.
Is "Application accepted " the same as "Registration granted?.
Some of the of the logos are Black on White. I wonder if those are granted, they would give cause for action against almost any normal rendition of the name in print as "passing off".
I also wonder if Billy has disclosed what he knows about LeRoc to the trademark office.
No.
This is why they have the classes of use.
If you are so inclined, you could start a LEROC sex shop chain, and there is nothing that any current Leroc trade mark holders can do about it as you are not passing of as any of them. If you want to push your luck you could even use their Stylised Logo - as long as you are not infringing into the registered classes of use, inc. DVDs etc
Very good points Caro.
All applications have to be published in the Trades Marks Gazette.
Billy is being very open and honest about the whole thing. People who believe that his applications infringe on their current rights should contact a lawyer and if necessary lodge an objection, provided it is within the prescribed time limit.
Billy only has to make a case for his application, and show evidence of use of his proposed marks, he does not have to represent anyone else, or say what others may be doing.
If some logos in Black and White are in fact Registered, he has a strong case, the fewer styling, the better. It makes it easier to catch infringements. The best Trade Marks are just Capitalised or Non capitalised words, but these are granted only in extreme cases.
Owners of valuable marks also employ monitoring service to ensure that anything remotely ressembling their mark is objected to on the grounds that it would infringe on their registered rights.
Ive decided to change my name to Lee Roc![]()
I'm gong to have to change my .sig again.
But what you're missing is that Billy is saying that he has trademarked a generic term. It's like someone saying that they've trademarked "SALSA" or "TANGO".
The history of Leroc (LeRoc, LEROC, leROC, Le Roc , etc....) is interesting. There've been many threads on the subject in this forum. When the Ceroc & Le Roc clubs split - James Cronin took the well documented trademarked & franchised Ceroc business route. However, it seems that the Le Roc people chose a different path. No one trademarked the name, which meant that it became a generic term that anyone could use. Many different and totally unconnected clubs and classes were created over the years. The LeRoc French Jive Federation was also created, which provides (amongst other benefits) a teaching qualification and syllabus - which gives clubs the benefit of belonging to a recognised organisation if they want to join. However it's completely voluntary for a club to join. Think of it as a bit like a trade association, or a union, if you like.
So, it's more than just infringing on other businesses' rights to use the word. It's the general use of the word. Imagine someone like Caro or PaulF trademarking "WEST COAST SWING"? It's as ridiculous as that!
It's still not clear whether Billy's initial statement is true. Has he trademarked the word? It would appear from the application that it's he's trademarked a set of logos - but that's not what he's saying on his website.
So - we still await Billy's clarification......![]()
I don’t think there is a time limit
Invalidation
but it costs £200 to start invalidation proceedings
plus of course your legal fees and these guys can change £400 an hour
It seems there is a general principle at stake here, the protection of generic terms. I have emailed the Trademark office asking if they do Internet searches on words applied for and if they contact people using them in business, and, if not, why not.
If it transpires that every businessman in the U.K. is expected to invest time in reading every issue of the trademarks journal to protect their business tools it may well escalate to letters to the Ombudsman and my MP.
It seems to me that Mr Cullens time woud have been better spent devising his own brand which he could fully protect and exploit. (Dance B.C. ? )
(B.C. Billy Cullen? )
(Before Ceroc?)
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