Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

Company sells stationary exercise bicycles under the trademark “SPINNER.”  Another company comes along and wants to register the “SPNERGY” mark for identical goods.  Are SPINNER and SPNERGY so similar that a buyer of stationary exercise bicycles would think goods originated with or were somehow associated with or sponsored by the same entity?  Are they confusingly similar?

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James Lindon, Ph.D. Patent Attorney
Lindon & Lindon, LLC
Cleveland, Ohio
Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights, Pharmacy Law, Litigation
[this is not legal advice - provided for discussion only]
Intellectual Property for the Individual and Small Business: Identify, Protect, Enforce, Defend.
"Fools rush in where angels fear to tread."
http://www.LindonLaw.com

well although similar if the logo treatment is different I wouldn`t worry about it, but if the logos are similar I would. Last Year Ford Motor company was sued by Honda for vehicle badage naming. Ford/Lincoln`s new MKX  (MK standing for Mark) is very similar to Honda`s MDX. In this example I think they`re too close. In your`s they say to totally different things one says spinner one says sp-engery. Honestly I dont care for SPNERGY anyways, not a cool sounding name, its made up and simply confusing as to what they are as a brand.

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He who gets greedy like a pig, gets slaughtered like a hog!

Yes, I think they`re confusingly similar. I might even assume they were made by the same company. But who knows, would I make that mistake in a store? Probably not. 

the USPTO thought they were confusingly similar, which I found surprising.

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James Lindon, Ph.D. Patent Attorney
Lindon & Lindon, LLC
Cleveland, Ohio
Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights, Pharmacy Law, Litigation
[this is not legal advice - provided for discussion only]
Intellectual Property for the Individual and Small Business: Identify, Protect, Enforce, Defend.
"Fools rush in where angels fear to tread."
http://www.LindonLaw.com

I agree with you. I don`t find them confusingly similar at all.

 

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