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I received this letter approximately one week after registering realtor-finder.net. I figured i should share it with the community
The Internet domain name, realtor-finder.net, which you have recently registered has been identified by the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS as one in which the membership marks of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS (National Association) are used as a part of the domain name. The domain name came to our attention as a result of our monitoring of the Internet for use of the REALTOR membership marks. The terms REALTOR, REALTORS, and REALTOR-ASSOCIATE, as well as the REALTOR block "R" logo, are all federally registered collective membership marks owned by the National Association. Collective membership marks are a type of trademark which, rather than indicating the source of a product or service, identify the user of the membership mark as a member of a particular group, in this case the National Association.
The National Association has over 1,000,000 members each of whom is licensed to use one or more of the membership marks to identify themselves and their real estate businesses. Over twenty-five years ago, the National Association developed a comprehensive set of rules governing the proper use of the membership marks by its members to accomplish this in an orderly manner. These rules still apply not only in the print world, but also in the new electronic media. Members of the National Association may find information on the proper use of the membership marks in the Membership Marks Manual which is posted on our website at www.REALTOR.org. The Manual can be found by clicking on the following links: -“Law & Policy” and “REALTOR Trademark Rules.” If you are a member, please review these rules and if you have any questions, please contact me by replying to this email.
If you are not a member your use of the membership marks is incorrect and not authorized by the National Association. Because the use has not been authorized it may also be viewed as an infringement of the National Association's legal rights in its membership marks under the federal Lanham Act and other state and federal laws. To eliminate this potential source of conflict, we would appreciate your cooperation in revising your site and/or domain name to eliminate the use of the membership marks. Many times this is as simple as substituting an appropriate job title for the term being used, for example, real estate broker can often be used without making any other changes to the text. If you would like to read more about trademarks and the rights of trademark owners, there are a number of sites on the Internet, which address this topic.
We are attempting to track our efforts in connection with the Internet and request that you acknowledge your understanding of this request for your cooperation and provide us with your assurance that you will not use this domain name. Our e-mail address is [email protected]. Thank you for your help and we look forward to receiving your reply.
-What do you guys think?
The Internet domain name, realtor-finder.net, which you have recently registered has been identified by the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS as one in which the membership marks of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS (National Association) are used as a part of the domain name. The domain name came to our attention as a result of our monitoring of the Internet for use of the REALTOR membership marks. The terms REALTOR, REALTORS, and REALTOR-ASSOCIATE, as well as the REALTOR block "R" logo, are all federally registered collective membership marks owned by the National Association. Collective membership marks are a type of trademark which, rather than indicating the source of a product or service, identify the user of the membership mark as a member of a particular group, in this case the National Association.
The National Association has over 1,000,000 members each of whom is licensed to use one or more of the membership marks to identify themselves and their real estate businesses. Over twenty-five years ago, the National Association developed a comprehensive set of rules governing the proper use of the membership marks by its members to accomplish this in an orderly manner. These rules still apply not only in the print world, but also in the new electronic media. Members of the National Association may find information on the proper use of the membership marks in the Membership Marks Manual which is posted on our website at www.REALTOR.org. The Manual can be found by clicking on the following links: -“Law & Policy” and “REALTOR Trademark Rules.” If you are a member, please review these rules and if you have any questions, please contact me by replying to this email.
If you are not a member your use of the membership marks is incorrect and not authorized by the National Association. Because the use has not been authorized it may also be viewed as an infringement of the National Association's legal rights in its membership marks under the federal Lanham Act and other state and federal laws. To eliminate this potential source of conflict, we would appreciate your cooperation in revising your site and/or domain name to eliminate the use of the membership marks. Many times this is as simple as substituting an appropriate job title for the term being used, for example, real estate broker can often be used without making any other changes to the text. If you would like to read more about trademarks and the rights of trademark owners, there are a number of sites on the Internet, which address this topic.
We are attempting to track our efforts in connection with the Internet and request that you acknowledge your understanding of this request for your cooperation and provide us with your assurance that you will not use this domain name. Our e-mail address is [email protected]. Thank you for your help and we look forward to receiving your reply.
-What do you guys think?
