Tabberone is pronounced tab ber won |
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Reverse Confusion |
In the more traditional cases of trademark infringement, the infringer counterfeits the mark or uses it in some way that causes confusion as to the
source of the product. In most reverse confusion cases, a junior (or new) user adopts a mark already in use by the senior user. Then the junior user
becomes more recognized for the trademark than the senior user through advertising and other expenditures used to promote the mark. The
original trademark owner then wants the junior user to stop using the mark even though the junior user is now more readily identified with the mark.
As with many legal issues, the various federal districts are not in agreement concerning reverse confusion. In 1974 the Tenth Circuit was the first to officially recognize it in Big O Tire Dealers, Inc. v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co, 561 F.2d 1365 (10th Cir. 1977). Since then, most circuits have recognized the Reverse Confusion Doctrine being in differing degrees. The 2003 article titled Reverse Confusion In Trade,arks; Balancing The Interests Of The Public, The Trademark Owner, And The Infringer by Joel R. Feldman for the Journal of Technology Law is a lengthy but in depth look at reverse confusion, In The Other Trademark Infringement, the Intellectual Property Law Blog discusses the relevance of the Ninth Circuit's narrowing of the application of reverse confusion. From October 12, 2006 by Sheppard Mullin. In A&H Sportswear v Victoria's Secret, the two fought over the word "Miracle" and Victoria's Secret lost on reverse confusion grounds. |
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