Trademark Bidding?

[wildwildwest]

I just received an email from a top sponsor, saying:

"Please cease all trademark bidding within the next 48 hours or we will be forced to remove you..."

:eek:

I don't have a fucking clue what they're talking about, so if I am 'guilty' then I am totally unaware... Can anyone explain to me what this means? And if I was bidding on something, wouldn't I know I was doing it?

I found one post by Lee that contained the words "trademark bidding" but there was no explanation or why it applied to this industry...

[desslock]

I received that as well. It certainly was "jargon heavy".

I think the Fleshlight people could have communicated that a little better.

What they are saying is that they disallow their affiliates from buying Google AdWords ad campaigns, or Yahoo / Overture Ads that have "Fleshlight" in the text of the ad.

Most companies do not allow it. You can't run a Google Ad Campaign that says "Wall Street Journal" either.

Steve

[wildwildwest]

Umm, okay then. I ain't guilty. But here is what I found in my research:

Google's adword policy: (from http://www.google.com/tm_complaint_adwords.html)

As a provider of space for advertisements, please note that Google is not in a position to arbitrate trademark disputes between the advertisers and trademark owners. As stated in our Terms and Conditions the advertisers themselves are responsible for the keywords and ad content that they choose to use. Accordingly, we encourage trademark owners to resolve their disputes directly with the advertisers, particularly because the advertisers may have similar advertisements on other sites.

As a courtesy to trademark owners, however, we are willing to perform a limited investigation of reasonable complaints. Our procedure differs depending on the country in which trademark rights exist... When we receive a complaint from a trademark owner, we only investigate the use of the trademark in ad text. If the advertiser is using the trademark in ad text, we will require the advertiser to remove the trademark and prevent them from using it in ad text in the future. Please note that we will not disable keywords in response to a trademark complaint....

[Lee]

They mean on keywords such as 'Playboy' one would assume, not 'fleshlight' as that is the product being sold.

Likewise, say you use the keywords 'Foreskin Fantasy' i could, in theory sue Fleshlight and win because they would be profiting off one of my service marks unfairly.

Regards,

Lee

[desslock]

No, Lee

They are also referring to trademarked products and names, specifically Fleshlight. They've apparently trademarked it. The decision to allow affiliates use trademarked terms is up to the company.

But what Fleshlight means from their email is that you cannot sign up with Google Adwords and run an ad that says

"My penis fit inside my Fleshlight. So can yours!"



(Another example: if you google "Harry Potter" there are no Google AdWords campaigns running)

[BBweb]

No, Lee

They are also referring to trademarked products and names, specifically Fleshlight. They've apparently trademarked it. The decision to allow affiliates use trademarked terms is up to the company.

But what Fleshlight means from their email is that you cannot sign up with Google Adwords and run an ad that says

"My penis fit inside my Fleshlight. So can yours!"



(Another example: if you google "Harry Potter" there are no Google AdWords campaigns running)

Im willing to bet you would be fine with that ad. What they are reffering to is you bidding on the keyword "Flesh Light"

Very popular in mainstream to not allow people to bid on your trademark