General Music Chat

I've got a new nam for a band. I like it so much, is it possible to publish it before somebody else uses it? I could create a .com I guess. Bandname registry? Ideas? We're doing an all original gig in a few months. Band name change is necessary.

The .com is taken,but it's the name (sort of) of a musical festival. The .org is available. I think I need to jump on this one.

For serious legal protection you probably need a trademark. Everything else is pretty limited in terms of protecting your right of ownership.

http://music.directlegal.com/dlm_tg_why_trademark.htm

If you have the means, I would squat on .org, .net, .tv
If that dot com doesn't already have them, depending on their revenue, they will come along and buy them from you.

In the state of Texas I go to the county clerk and register for an assumed name certificate or DBA (doing business as) it cost about $30.00 I do that in all my surrounding counties. At least the ones where the name is still available. The name registration DBA is good for 10 years.

You can only register it in a state-by-state basis.


I'm not an attorney, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express one time. It was outside Detroit and sucked - the A/C crapped out on the first night (of 2)!

For serious legal protection you probably need a trademark. Everything else is pretty limited in terms of protecting your right of ownership.

http://music.directlegal.com/dlm_tg_why_trademark.htm

Actually, to successfully obtain a trademark, you have to be able to show and describe a robust service or goods . I dunno how many bands trademark a symbol (maybe Prince, The Stones?)

I know this because I looked into it and man it sucks... The fees are very high, because the attys have to research extensively to ensure you aren't infringing on another trademark...



1) get on GO daddy or similar service and buy up a crap load of domains (Coms, Orgs & NETs) where ever that name is free and available . (This protects you from some other' jack ass monopolizing that name. lol It also helps you decide whether you should adjust the name or not.

2) For a band name, in liue of a trademark, I would simply recommend to file the name with the county court house as a proprietorship. DBA <Insert> That protects you from somebody else hanging their shingle with that name.


Trademarks are for the big boys... (i.e. If you arent generating a couple of million or more in revenue each year, its too premature to consider a trademark.) Then later, when it matures, you have to weigh the decision about how important it really is, with respect to competitors... (Usually goes hand in hand with incorporating)
Trademarks are a pain in the ass... and while it helps with branding, you really need to have a viable market share in some product or service for it to pay off.

IMHO

I've got a new nam for a band. I like it so much, is it possible to publish it before somebody else uses it? I could create a .com I guess. Bandname registry? Ideas? We're doing an all original gig in a few months. Band name change is necessary.

Don't tell a soul. When someone asks you what the name of your band is, just tell them that the name of your band is so good that you have to keep it a secret to keep someone from stealing it. And if you tell them, you'll have to kill them.

I can wait until you register it.

Then you can tell us here at Bmix. I am curious for sure..

I'm thinkin that if a festival already used the name, that you would have a difficult time trademarking it. Not impossible, but imagine me coming up with the band name "lollapalooza" or "ozzfest"..

But our trademark system is so backasswards that nothing would surprise me.

I'm probably going to buy a .net, the .com is already taken BUT the name of that .com is different, WEIRD. I can't find any band on the internet with this name. Just unbelievable. I thought all the good names were taken. We're not going to make millions off it I'm sure. Let somebody with millions sue us. The publicity will do us good.

I'm probably going to buy a .net, the .com is already taken BUT the name of that .com is different, WEIRD. I can't find any band on the internet with this name. Just unbelievable. I thought all the good names were taken. We're not going to make millions off it I'm sure. Let somebody with millions sue us. The publicity will do us good.

I don't understand (?). If the dot com is taken, how is it named different? Wouldn't that mean it's not taken? If it is taken, then wouldn't the name be trademarked already?

I'm missing something clearly.

Bob,

I was getting sued for copyright infringement earlier and only as of today I got a letter that told me they had the wrong fellow.

(whew)

All that time, I was shitting a brick because I had no idea what they were referring to. I was planning on trying to coax some $ out of them for consequential damages but I got the letter today and thus do not have to go to court in June.

Trust me, it's not fun to be sued over anything and all the time you have to wait is akin to walking on a razor blade.

At one point, my stupid buddy kept telling me I needed a lawyer.(smack) "Don't ask people who don't know anything" is the moral of the story.

http://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/basics/definitions.jsp