News Mayhems accuses Thermaltake of Pastel trademark rip-off

There's the old mnemonic from the TRUE days: Thermaltake take their designs from others, Thermalright is the right one to buy. Though I can't think of any prominent Thermalright designs for the last few years, the TRUE probably still works just fine as long as you have room.

Though in this case, Mayhems piques my annoyance at trademarking of single adjectives.

 

Thermaltake: "Screw you, we're bigger than you."

 

I am sure Thermaltake is legally in the wrong here, but I have to wonder at being able to trademark something that is just a generic term for a shade of colour. If I make something to do with cooling that happens to have pastel colours can I not use the term "pastel" which is the correct term to describe it? Is only one company allowed to have "pastel" shades of paint?

 

Similarly UPS has trademarked brown, not a specific shade of brown... brown.

 

With what I know of the parties involved, this could turn into a John Woo flick.
I hope Mick gives gives them a good smack in the nethers. It's sickening to see thermalfake bullying smaller companies.

 

To go Full Pedant for a moment: While it is necessary to not ignore 'infringement' of your trademark in order to qualify as being in active use of it, you do not have no choice but to 'take to task' an infringer. This is often brought up in relation to fanworks referring to licensed franchises, and specific avenue to avoid a non-use attack in those cases is to grant a specific license to the 'infringer' (in the case of fan-works, a vary basic "you can use our trademarked name/image in relation to your project, only is this specific capacity as a fangame/book/etc, and only as long as it is not used to make a profit" would satisfy all parties and avoid jumping from zero to cease-and-desist).
For this case specifically, one avenue would be for Mayhems to request Thermal take stick a little asterisk next to the word 'Pastel' and a note at the bottom of their ad copy with "licensed from Mayhems", for example. It may even be that this was the avenue Mayhems initially pursued but Thermaltake rejected.

tl;dr Active use defence of a trademark does not require jumping straight to the nuclear option, much as many trademark holders (or at least, the highly paid lawyers employed thereof) would like you to think otherwise.

 

Without Prejudice

What we have offered them is this -

1) Remove our registered trademark.
2) They can use the registered trademark but must donate £100 a year to the Autistic Spectrum Society in the UK every year they use the registered trademark with our express permission.
3) Go down the legal route. (this is were it gets nasty and no one wins) and we do not wish this to happen!, but if forced into a comer are willing to do.

This is not a war, we do not want there money, we would just like for this to be resolved respectfully. We have no issue with Thermaltake, there staff or any thing else and do not wish for any one to use this as a shouting post for other reasons.

We await there replay.

 

1. £100 a year to a charity is probably too steep for a group deliberately trying to take over a product you created.
2. Turn off IPhone auto correct. It's killing your vocabulary.

 

I think the issue with that interpretation of trademarks here is that decorative cooling fluids (like paints, dyes, fabrics and unlike distinctive use of colour in designs) are characterised in their function by their colours. And pastel is a generic term for a group of colours. If a company sold red, yellow and blue coloured fluid and marketed them as "Primary" would it be reasonable to trademark Primary in that context?

I'm not even saying you shouldn't be able to trademark a colour for it's use in and of itself, just that if you do you should use not try to use an existing term for a group of colours

"A soft and delicate shade of a colour." seems pretty broad and could apply to a given dilution of even that pink.

 

The point I'm making is that: "...that decorative cooling fluids (like paints, dyes, fabrics and unlike distinctive use of colour in designs *ie. to represent a business or product*) are characterised in their function by their colours"

 

I am growing to hate trademarks as I get older. It was a good idea, but then people started registering every word their company uses as a trademark and ruined it.

 

Sic 'em Mick!, I know you won't go silent.

#Thermalfake

 

Well today they posted all about there "Pastel Coolant". seems like they are just infringing and don't care. Some thing is happening at our end and will take time but this hasn't gone unnoticed..

 

Take the piss out of the absurdity of it all, or support a valid copyright infrigment? I'm seriously torn!