The venerable publication UFO Magazine continues to make a legal comedy show by sending out sternly worded letters admonishing people from using the term UFO in their own publications. It’s happened second time, to the operator of a forum on AOL of all things!
Basically, UFO magazine has trademarked the term UFO.” Not UFO Magazine (for whatever reason, the term UFO Magazine was not or cannot be trademarked.) So, anyone with a web publication or blog using the term UFO should be getting a letter from their lawyers asking them to cease using the term,
Even worse! They might suffer having UFO magazines writers send nasty letters to your guest book and call you names. Take it from me, you DON’T want that to happen!
So, here is a warning from the Odd Emperor, EVERYONE! For the love of god! Stop using the term UFO immediately! If you have a blog with the term UFO, delete it! RIGHT NOW!!!! If you have an essay with the term UFO in the title, change it! If you have EVER used the term UFO! STOP IT! Call UFO Magazine’s publishers and apologize for treading on their sacred property.
The term UFO is NO LONGER YOURS TO USE!!!!!! The term UFO(tm) is the soul property of UFO(tm) Magazine and they will use their considerable powers to either make you stop using their stuff (the term UFO in this case) OR they will sic their writers on you, call you an assclown in public and other very mature things.
You might die of embarrassment
It is always amazing to me how much is left out of AC’s posts. First, he never brings up the fact that Bill and Nancy don’t own the trademark, they merely pay money to lease it from the owner so they can publish UFO Mag. Does he pay money to lease it? Of course not. Second, he never ever brings up the fact that the USPTO requires you to keep others from infringing on your trademark or you lose rights to it, they have no choice. He always makes it sound so personal and like they are picking on the little guy. Third, he always makes it sound as though the word UFO is TM’d, whereas if you actually read the TM it is in reference to a magazine or something that could be considered a magazine, like a newsletter. Forth, he also never mentions that he has filed for his own trademark which if he is actually granted it, he will be forced to act in precisely the way he complains about others doing, or lose it. He is a complete hypocrite.
I really did try to stay out of this and let it work out in the legal manner. However, it became clear that he was not going to do that. He whines about it constantly. If you were to read some of his posts you would think UFO Mag is Microsoft and he is some poor little guy that they are picking on for no reason. He named his site UFO Magazine! Aside from not being or even wanting to be the least bit original, he can’t understand that the name is already taken? I mean seriously, even if there were no TM, why would you want to use a name that associated you with another known entity, especially when you constantly criticize the integrity of that entity? I can only guess for hits and to be able to make a big deal about how the huge corporate conglomerate of UFO Magazine (yeah, right) is picking on you.
Sorry OE. I have nothing against you. I just don’t understand why you see this in the manner you do. What if he had called his site The Skeptical Inquirer, which also has a TM on their title? I think you may be tainted by the fact that you don’t get along with certain people who write for UFO Mag because really it is a clear legal case, which should be worked out in that manner. As I have said in the past, it will be decided by the USPTO, not anyone else and I was willing to let that be until AC continued with his whining.
Hey Lesly, thanks for the comment and the opinion. For the record, i don’t approve of this AC character taking someone else’s name (presumable) out of spite and I’ve told him as much. he didn’t select that name randomly, he (allegedly) took it to piss people off.
On the other hand I don’t appreciate several of the writers from UFO Mag harassing and threatening this fellow over some matter that is really none of their damn business. they need to but out and allow the professionals handle things.
And Lesley, I get along with just about everyone, people choose not to get along with me. These are people who find it necessary to attack those whom they do not agree with. They do not know how to attack an idea, they must attack the person who asserts an offending idea.
people I have problems with are folks who for whatever reason cannot communicate with me in a manner that does not involve making stupid-empty threats ond/or insults(both of which I openly and completely mock.) That kind of junk has no business in a professional writing gig (or a pro-bono one like in UFO Magazine.) it has no business in a field that struggles to be taken seriously. The clowns in UFOlogy have the loudest voices and unless they can stop behaving like clowns the field will remain the backwater circuses it’s been for the past 60 years or so.
Hey! take care Lesley! Thanks for stopping by.
That kind of junk has no business in a professional writing gig (or a pro-bono one like in UFO Magazine.)
OK. Which one do you mean? Could there possibly be some confusion here? Congratulations to you on creating a totally unique website and website name. That shows a real enthusiasm for contribution in this field.
Thank you, Lesley, for the succinct, correct info. Again, real people trying to really solve the real UFO mysteries.
Nancy Birnes, editor in chief
UFO Magazine
No confusion at all Ms Birnes;
Your writers have absolutely no business making threats on your behalf. Additionally , my only enthusiasm in the Ufo field is for making some of the more disingenuous people (like a couple of your writers, the ones who have seen fit to threaten me ) …squirm. Apparently I can do this without even trying.
Since there seems to be little way that one can contribute to the “field” without becoming disingenuous, I am content with my lot.