[WikiEN-l] Legal threats on [[Talk:OmniCode]]

[Alphax (Wikipedia email)]

Daniel R. Tobias wrote:
> Some anon-IP user on [[Talk:OmniCode]] has been rattling sabers about
>  threatening to sue people for failing to acknowledge a company named
>  Omnicode, which apparently has a registered trademark on that name 
> which is being allegedly infringed by the geek-coding system called 
> OmniCode which is featured in the Wikipedia article of that name.
> 
> It's certainly possible that the creator of that coding system is 
> committing a trademark violation by using the name, but would 
> Wikipedia or its editors have any liability for writing an article 
> about it?  It would seem that a noncommercial, encyclopedic use of 
> the name in the course of discussing something that the name has been
>  used for (legally or illegally) wouldn't itself be actionable, but 
> I'm not a lawyer.
> 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:General_disclaimer#Trademarks

> Any of the trademarks, service marks, collective marks, design
> rights, personality rights or similar rights that are mentioned, used
> or cited in the articles of the Wikipedia encyclopedia are the
> property of their respective owners. Their use here does not imply
> that you may use them for any other purpose other than for the same
> or a similar informational use as contemplated by the original
> authors of these Wikipedia articles under the GFDL licensing scheme.
> Unless otherwise stated Wikipedia and Wikimedia sites are neither
> endorsed nor affiliated with any of the holders of any such rights
> and as such Wikipedia can not grant any rights to use any otherwise
> protected materials. Your use of any such or similar incorporeal
> property is at your own risk.

Any gripes that they have over the trademark can be taken elsewhere,
before they are indefinately blocked for making legal threats.

-- 
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