Is the word "polaroid" trademarked?

[RicoShay]

I'm wondering if my domain name would be subject to any trademark issues. The domain in question is a photography domain with "Polaroid" at the start (I'm sure you can work out what it is).

Anyway, I didn't think this would be trademarked. I thought Polaroid was a dictionary word (I guess I was mistaken there). When I tried to park it at Sedo it gave an error saying it won't allow this name due to "one of the following reasons" one of those reasons being that it could be trademarked!

So... I would hugely appreciate if someone could shed some light on this. I was originally planning on using the domain for some of my earlier photography work which I did using a Polaroid - but then changed my mind. Now I'm just not sure what to do... so if anyone could help out, that would be great!



Oh... and on a side note... whats with trademarks for .in domains? Someone mentioned any Indian domains cannot be touched by TM laws? Is that true? And if so... why?

Thanks in advance, look forward to hearing some views on these 2 things.

:o

 

[Kate]

Yes it is a TM.
Realtor is another "generic", dictionary word that is TMed as well... :talk:

 

[flamewalker]

Polaroid is not a generic word, it is a brand. IMHO, drop it and find another name, or, if you want to use it for your non-commercial personal site, you might ask Polaroid themselves if that would be ok. Then you will know for sure

 

[RicoShay]

Thanks Kate and flamewalker for clearing that up. Unfortunately the site I had in mind would've been non-commercial - just displaying photos taken using a polaroid camera, however I would've had advertising/adsense so I guess that would be a no-no.

Anyhow, so thats out of the way... what about my second question? anyone know what the deal is with trademarks in India? (.in names).

Thanks

 

[Dave_Z]

Realtor is another "generic", dictionary word

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/realtor

A service mark used for a real-estate agent affiliated with the National Association of Realtors.

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/realtor

a person who works in the real-estate business and is a member of the National Association of Real Estate Boards, or one of its constituent boards, and abides by its Code of Ethics.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/realtor

used for a real estate agent who is a member of the National Association of Realtors

Unless there's maybe a hard-bound dictionary defining it otherwise and you'll
maybe scan and attach it here. :D

If anything, it goes to show how some folks can confuse certain words that
are actually not generic at all...yet. That's one thing trademark holders aren't
interested in seeing happen.

 

[flamewalker]

I can see if someone always had the term Polaroid used as a verb instead of a noun easily being confused... same with realtor. Thats why its always good to ask

 

[weblord]

Polaroid ((trade mark) a plastic film that can polarize a beam of light; often used in sunglasses to eliminate glare)

http://wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=polaroid

 

[labrocca]

Next someone will say Kleenex is a real word too. Kids these days.

 

[jberryhill]

Shake it, shake, shake it, shake it (OHH OH)
Shake it, shake it, shake, shake it, shake it, shake it (OHH OH)
Shake it, shake it like a Polaroid Picture, shake it, shake it
Shh you got to, shake it, shh shake it, shake it, got to shake it
(Shake it Suga') shake it like a Polaroid Picture

But, seriously folks, after the overwhelming popularity of that line from "Hey Ya" by Outkast, Polaroid put out a press release advising against shaking Polaroid pictures while they are developing.

http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/ptech/02/17/polaroid.warns.reut/index.html

A Polaroid spokesman added: "Almost everybody does it, thinking that shaking accelerates the development process, but if you shake it too vigorously you could distort the image. A casual shake typically doesn't affect it."

Polaroid said its film should be laid on a flat surface and shielded from the wind, and that users should avoid bending or twisting their pictures. Of course, "lay it on a flat surface like a Polaroid picture," doesn't sound nearly as cool.

Next someone will say Kleenex is a real word too.

I've been waiting for someone to come along and say something like, "But isn't it the generic word for Kleenex?"

 

[RicoShay]

Lol, thanks for that jberryhill ...

 

[mirko888]

Polaroid® is a registered trademark of the Polaroid Corporation. Its official.

 

[RicoShay]

Polaroid® is a registered trademark of the Polaroid Corporation. Its official.

Yeah, I think we've worked that one out already now. But thanks.