bhorlings Posted January 29, 2010 Report Share Posted January 29, 2010 I just received a cease and desist from a major manufacturer because I use the term "Beaver" in my description of the bait. Funny thing is I took the bait off my site over a week ago because nobody wanted the one sided version I was selling. I don't know whether to be scared at this point or feel like a feather was just put in my cap! Needless to say I informed them that I no longer sell nor do I have the capability to make it because I no longer have the molds! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveh Posted January 29, 2010 Report Share Posted January 29, 2010 can you still sell the baits and call it a woodcock. do they just have the pataint on the name. i see dell took his split tails off his site. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhorlings Posted January 29, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2010 can you still sell the baits and call it a woodcock. do they just have the pataint on the name. i see dell took his split tails off his site. Wow... that's the third person I know of they have gone after today. They must be ramping up something big. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GB GONE Posted January 29, 2010 Report Share Posted January 29, 2010 (edited) Brian: Zoom goes throught the same spurts. I have heard through the grapevine Zoom might be making a move towards a hand injection bait that we have seen come out in the past few months. Design patent deal I hear. Anyway, respond with a NICE letter and state you no longer will use the name. End of story... Zoom goes after guys for the Trick Worm name quite frequently as well. They have the trademark so you have to go with the flow or risk a suit. I think most of us can't afford to go to court and fight one of these letters anyway, even if we thought we were not infringing!!! Jim Edited January 29, 2010 by ghostbaits Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhorlings Posted January 29, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2010 Brian: Zoom goes throught the same spurts. I have heard through the grapevine Zoom might be making a move towards a hand injection bait that we have seen come out in the past few months. Design patent deal I hear. Anyway, respond with a NICE letter and state you no longer will use the name. End of story... Zoom goes after guys for the Trick Worm name quite frequently as well. They have the trademark so you have to go with the flow or risk a suit. I think most of us can't afford to go to court and fight one of these letters anyway, even if we thought we were not infringing!!! Jim I did. It was easy for me since I no longer have the molds. Thanks for the advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piscivorous Pike Posted January 29, 2010 Report Share Posted January 29, 2010 Brian: Zoom goes throught the same spurts. I have heard through the grapevine Zoom might be making a move towards a hand injection bait that we have seen come out in the past few months. Design patent deal I hear. Anyway, respond with a NICE letter and state you no longer will use the name. End of story... Zoom goes after guys for the Trick Worm name quite frequently as well. They have the trademark so you have to go with the flow or risk a suit. I think most of us can't afford to go to court and fight one of these letters anyway, even if we thought we were not infringing!!! Jim Jim, You are so correct! Once in my lifetime I achieved the dream and built an Apiculture business. One product I marketed to several wholesale food companies that supply major grocery chains carried the name "A-1 xxxxx". DelMonte sells A-1 Sauce, a registered trademark. You can register a trade mark and have rights to its use but are limited to groupings of products, such as A-1 brake shoes is not the same catagory as sauces. My food product was in another catagory than an A-1 product owned by a large company and I was issued the registered mark. They issued a the "LETTER" and threatened a suit claiming people would confuse the two products. In order for them to have their A-1 name in the catagory I was in they needed a product and they did not have one. You see it is all civil law and open to opinions. I had done all the legal work and product research myself, and before the internet or PCs were invented! After getting the letter I went to a patent attorney and he was flabbergasted that a layman, me, had gone so far. But I was not ready to defend in trial without help. This is the equation. I could spend $50k and go to trial and win, likely would win looking at case law decisions. I could go to trial spend $50k and loose and then be indemified for their legal costs too! I imagine although their legal team worked for them they would claim $250K expnses. If I won on a 4% profit margin I would have had to sell a lot of product just to break even. They drove me out of business. I gave my plan to my lawyer. Sell out. In my presence he called them, told them they did not have a case and after my huge investment to create a trade mark I would fight and then they asked if I would sell. My lawyer asked if they were kidding after all with my plans and investment it was unlikely but he would check. He said good by to me that day and said he would call them in 10 days. He did they took my asking, so quickly did they take it we realized afterwards that I should have asked 3 times more than I did. I would be fishing from a 21 foot glass hull instead of a 14 aluminum if I had. Just remember my trump card was that they did not have a clear trademark infringement, I was in a different but similiar catagory. Secondly unless you have the profit to generate cash over losses, don't do it, sell out. It is a battle of attrition of the bank account and your retirement and your house and your boat. lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GB GONE Posted January 29, 2010 Report Share Posted January 29, 2010 Thanks for the personal story!!! Being right or wrong sometimes doesn't matter. Just matters who has the largest bank account (and who you know)!!!!! Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bass-Boys Posted January 30, 2010 Report Share Posted January 30, 2010 Money & BS run our whole country,, to bad.. anyway Brian, I was hoping to see this thread be about you signing KVD to a contract for B -Sticks !!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsworms Posted January 30, 2010 Report Share Posted January 30, 2010 (edited) I always get a chuckle out of these letters the big boys send us. You have to feel flattered they would care enough to feel threatened by your product. Oh yeah........forgot........most of us on this site make a BETTER product than the "big boys"!! Edited January 30, 2010 by alsworms Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mayos Baits Posted January 30, 2010 Report Share Posted January 30, 2010 I guess I have been lucky so far and received no letters. I have a bait posted on my site spelled like BEEVER you think that is to close to there name? One other question if you post a bait on e bay and say my bait is IKA LIKE is that going to generate a letter to? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallmouthaholic Posted February 2, 2010 Report Share Posted February 2, 2010 (edited) patent number D515,176S issued Aug 2000. Product logos are trademarks of Reaction Innovation. Here's the patent info- http://www.google.com/patents?id=Lnh4AAAAEBAJ&printsec=abstract&zoom=4&source=gbs_overview_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q=&f=false The patent is good for 14 years from date of issue Edited February 2, 2010 by smallmouthaholic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GB GONE Posted February 2, 2010 Report Share Posted February 2, 2010 You will eventually get a letter if you use anything close to a Trademarked name. Things like "Slick Worm" or Tricky Worm will get you a letter from Zoom. BEEVER. BEE-VER etc will also get you noticed eventually. I have talked with the legal firm that represents Zoom and any attempt to sell a product while using a close name or facsimile is trademark infringement. Design patents and function patents are different. These will get you a letter faster than the first I believe! Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluegrasslover Posted February 2, 2010 Report Share Posted February 2, 2010 patent number D515,176S issued Aug 2000. Product logos are trademarks of Reaction Innovation. Here's the patent info- http://www.google.co...page&q=&f=false The patent is good for 14 years from date of issue Dang...that's the shortest patent application I've ever seen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toadfrog Posted February 15, 2010 Report Share Posted February 15, 2010 Blakemore tried that on me once when I was making road runner/pony heads. I stopped making them because I didn't like them anyway and don't understand the almost cult following they have. I took all the products out of my store and began a word of mouth boycot from builder to builder, bait shop to bait shop. I am not advocating such a nutty approach but it worked back in the 90's. I still don't own any blakemore products. LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MuskyGary Posted February 15, 2010 Report Share Posted February 15, 2010 I see Lurecraft just pulled all of his beaver molds because of patent infringment! Stated he would no longer be able to sell them. Good thing I have a few. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeltaMan Posted March 3, 2010 Report Share Posted March 3, 2010 you know i kinda have the feeling that you guys are a little more clever than copying some one elses lure name. If it is your own type or make of bait then invent a name for it. i don't want to sound like i am being a pessimest but come on guys. If and when i hit big time (hahahaha) i don't want people copying my lures or my name even if it is a completely different design. i feel like this is a very balsy move and i dont want any judgement passed along to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fatman Posted March 4, 2010 Report Share Posted March 4, 2010 Even if they pull all the molds, people will still make pop or rtv molds of them to cast their own. Fatman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
