Registered Fantasy: Group of Online Gamers Trademark Themselves [IP Bytes #5]

(Original image from: Doug Minkler)

Well it had to happen. . . with the corporatization of everything in existence, ownership and dollar interests have crossed over to the completely make-believe. Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games have been popular in the media for their tendancy to engulf the lives of the players. These games involve giant online worlds created for the express purpose of having players plunge their created characters into them. Often these games are huge and can host thousands of players at one time building up the reputation and abilities of their characters.

The idea of clans quickly followed. A clan is group of players who adventure together. It began as a way of creating virtual friendships and has evolved into groups creating derivative communities and opportunities for adventure. Putting aside the possibility of copyright infringment aside, this post exlusively highlights the rise of The Syndicate. This group is one of the largest online gaming groups in cyber space. Using the influence of their sheer numbers The Syndicate is the first clan with corporate sponsorship. Entering an alliance with Thunder Box PC the clan now claims that the word "syndicate" should be considered trademarked for use in a MMORPG clan. As such they have created exlusive rights to this name that don't seem to fit the traditional notion of trademark laws.

Generally people trademark a name to protect the reputation of a source provider of goods or services. The Syndicate doesn't seem to really be providing either. While they do have a "reputation" in the online gaming world, it seems a stretch to think of them the way one thinks of a purveyor establishing an identity to foster competition. Arguably one say that the whole idea of a clan and MMORPG in general is competitive and this is The Syndicate's way of remaining viable, distinguishable and traceable. Also, the fact that they promote Thunder Box P.C. and act as a gateway to their sponsor's products may qualify them under the trademark umbrella. Perhaps I will better understand this as my present level of experience with trademark increases. I am interested to hear what others write about this, and will want to follow any developments.