Q: Is there a patent on the red rubber logo on the front? or can i make a speaker with a logo on a red rubber square?
A:
A logo to identify the source of a product would typically be covered by a trademark rather than a patent. You marked this question as dealing with copyright and patent but you need to seek trademark advice.
There is a tiny chance that they sought a design patent that would be relevant. You can check for design patents assigned to the company through the assignment data base as that might be easier than searching as text based searches can be difficult for a design patent as there is not much text to search.
https://assignment.uspto.gov/patent/index.html#/patent/search
I hope this helps.
Kevin E Flynn
A:
Kevin Flynn is giving you a good advice, as always. A few other points:
If you are going to be using a red square on other products, say, hamburger wrappers, automobile parts, travel brochures, and like, then it would be OK. The problem might exist if you are trying to use it for speakers. The reason is that there may be a likelihood of confusion. A person seeing your speakers with the red square might confuse your speakers with JBL's speakers. Will a court find that there is a likelihood of confusion if you use a red square? I don't know, but it wouldn't be surprised if JBL's attorneys send you a C&D letter.
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
