|
This letter
was received from..... Trademark Enforcement Coordinator of
The Harley-Davidson Motor Company
Dear Sirs or Madams:
This letter is with regard to your misuse of our SPORTSTER trademark,
our EVOLUTION trademark and our Bar & Shield Design trademark and
variations therein in connection with your online motorcycle-related
business.
Harley-Davidson Motor Company has the right to use the above-referenced
trademarks on and in connection with motorcycle-related goods and
services of all types. As such, we also have the right and the
obligation to control all uses of those marks in connection with
similar goods.
Iron Head Sportster is not an authorized Harley-Davidson dealer or
licensee. However, it has come to our attention that you have been
using the above-mentioned trademarks in such a way as to leave the
impression in the minds of consumers and potential consumers that some
relationship may exist between you and Harley-Davidson, or between
Harley-Davidson and the products offered by you. Specifically, we are
aware that you are using a slightly altered version of our Bar & Shield
Design trademark, which has the words "Iron Head Motor Company" within
it on your web site wallpaper, and on goods such as aprons, mugs,
shirts and clocks. We are also aware that you are selling shirts,
mugs, caps and mouse-pads which have either our SPORTSTER trademark or
EVOLUTION trademark on them. We have federally registered trademarks
for the Bar & Shield Design trademark, the SPORTSTER trademark and the
EVOLUTION trademark, and therefore, they may not be used by others
without our express written consent.
Please note that the Bar & Shield Design trademark is protected regardless
of the wording or graphic element contained therein. Slightly
modifying our design does not and would not make this distinctively
different from ours. Further note that the word EVO is confusingly
similar to our EVOLUTION trademark when used in the same
commerce as motorcycles or similar channels of trade. We therefore
also object to your use of EVO.
We are further aware that you are using "ironheadsportster.com" as your
web site domain name. Again, as an independent business, unaffiliated
with Harley-Davidson Motor Company, you may use our worded trademarks
in truthful and informational phrases to describe your activities.
Since your web site involves commercial activity, we do not feel that
your use of our trademarks is informational and thus you cannot use any
of our trademarks, which in this particular case means you cannot use
"SPORTSTER," as part of your domain name. Using our HARLEY-DAVIDSON
trademark as part of your domain name is likely to cause the consumer
or potential consumer to confuse your web site with us. We wish to
also point out that the entity responsible for assigning domain names
does not check to see if a requested domain name violates an existing
trademark. It is concerned only with whether the name is already taken
as a domain name. In other words, simply being assigned a domain name
does ! not necessarily entitle you to the rights thereof.
Finally, we note that several images on your web site are copyrights of
Harley-Davidson. You do not have permission and therefore cannot use any
of our copyrighted images. Accordingly, you will need to take and use
your own photographs.
It is our firm opinion that your current use of our above-mentioned
trademarks constitutes trademark infringement under the laws of the United
States, unfair competition under state law, and dilution under the Federal
Trademark Dilution Act of 1995.
Demand hereby made that you:
1. Immediately cease distributing, and/or offering for sale the
above-described goods bearing Harley-Davidson's trademark or any
confusingly similar marks without Harley-Davidson's consent;
2. Provide us with a complete accounting as to your existing inventory
and, if applicable, prior sales of these items;
3. Voluntarily surrender to Harley-Davidson all items in your possession
or control in any location that display, without our consent, the use of
Harley-Davidson's trademarks or any confusingly similar marks including
any means used to reproduce our trademarks, including, but not limited to,
such items as heat transfers, dies, moulds, embroidery tapes, silk screens,
and computer disks containing scanned images of our logos or images;
4. Identify your supplier of the above-mentioned goods bearing our
trademarks without our consent, in the event that you are not creating
them;
5. Re-assign your domain name to us; and
6. Provide us with written assurances that you will refrain from the
activities described above in the future.
Unless we promptly receive confirmation of your compliance with these
demands, we will be forced to take such steps as may be necessary to
prevent further trademark infringement, unfair competition, and dilution.
Sincerely.
This was the
second letter received from..... Trademark Enforcement Coordinator of
The Harley-Davidson Motor Company
Thank you for
removing our Bar & Shield Design trademark and our copyrighted images from
your web site. While we appreciate your immediate attention to this
matter, we still must object to your use of our HARLEY-DAVIDSON MOTOR
CYCLES w/Bar & Shield Design trademark in the "Harley-Davidson" area on
your web site, and we request that you respond to our previous demands:
1. Immediately cease distributing, and/or offering for sale the
above-described goods bearing Harley-Davidson's trademark or any
confusingly similar marks without Harley-Davidson's consent;
2. Provide us with a complete accounting as to your existing inventory
and, if applicable, prior sales of these items;
3. Voluntarily surrender to Harley-Davidson all items in your possession
or control in any location that display, without our consent, the use of
Harley-Davidson's trademarks or any confusingly similar marks including
any means used to reproduce our trademarks, including, but not limited to,
such items as heat transfers, dies, moulds, embroidery tapes, silk
screens, and computer disks containing scanned images of our logos or
images;
4. Identify your supplier of the above-mentioned goods bearing our
trademarks without our consent, in the event that you are not creating
them;
5. Re-assign your domain name to us; and
6. Provide us with written assurances that you will refrain from the
activities described above in the future.
Please contact me by phone or email to discuss this matter.
Sincerely.
Sounds to me that this is a "Dirty Trick Campaign"
If HD want the domain name so badly, then ask them
to make you an offer $250,000 sounds reasonable to me.......Arnie |
