TM filed which is same name as my long existing website

[markfromslo]

I have a situation very similar to this made-up domain name example. We'll use the names sextoy.com and sextoys.com for the sake of discussion--the names are not mine, but represent my names in the subject area and the broadness of the terms.

1. I have owned sextoy.com (and other major TLDs) and sextoys.com (and other major TLDs) since about 2005.
2. I have run a site on sextoy.com since 2005, which is a blog that talks about sex toys, and has ads and affiliate programs that sell sex toys.
3. Last year, 2016, along comes someone out of the blue who trademarks "Sex Toy" and the use is to sell sex toys.

Note: In 2013 I filed (DIY filing) for a TM on the site, as a site for commentary on "sex toys" (using our example here), and it was rejected because "the mark is merely descriptive of the subject matter of applicant’s blogs" and that lots of blogs write articles on the subject.

I know they cannot take my domain names away since I have prior use. However, do I now have a concern about running ads on my site that sell sex toys? Or since I've been doing this for a decade, can I continue.

Perhaps, can I even challenge the registered TM?

 

[jberryhill]

Absent specific information, there is no good answer to your question.

Did you check the filings under TSDR to see what they did to get around the refusal, or is this another Supplemental Registration being mistaken for a Principal Registration?