Facebook Places Your Trademarks At Risk

Starting June 13, 2009 Facebook users can create personalized URLs for their Facebook pages. http://www.facebook.com/username/ where “username” is the name that you register. These personalized URLs are offered on a first-come, first-serve basis. The intention is that “friends” can go directly to your personalized URL.

Because this is just another avenue for infringers to try and steal trademarks from rightful owners, and since the law on this area is developing we are recommending that our clients immediately create accounts on facebook and register their trademarks as personalized URLs. For example, I have registered: http://www.facebook.com/WebTM. There is nothing particularly interesting at my facebook wall, but it is there.

So if you go and try and register your trademark as a personalized URL, and it is taken, Facebook is providing a means to complain by its “[http://www.facebook.com/copyright.php?noncopyright_notice=1] Notice of Intellectual Property Infringement (Non-Copyright Claim)”.If someone adopts your trademark as a personal URL on Facebook, report it immediately. Should you require any assistance in dealing with this, please contact me directly.