Quote from: Vlad2Vlad on December 10, 2014, 07:13:46 AM

Quote from: siampumpkin on December 10, 2014, 07:04:24 AM

Trademarks, registered or not are based on first use, not first to register. If someone wants to take the trouble and can provide "prior art" or proof of use in layman's language then it can be challenged and reversed. Whether someone bothers to is what matters. Once it is used by another person and it is not challenged within a certain period of time, then it is considered abandoned and someone else can lay claim to it.

This was exactly my understanding but I'm an economist and not a patent/trademark lawyer.

Problem is we can't afford a lawyer - if we could I think we could definitely stop this nonsense.

You don't need a lawyer. Trademark registration take at least 17 months to be approved. Anyone can file a claim of existing prior art and get the trademark delayed or denied. One the application is published, opposition statements to the filing can be filed with the PTMO.