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Can I use the name of a famous brand on my website when I indicate that the product is a replica? What restrictions exist in this case?

ale.alexander.421
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2 Answers2

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Probably not, unless the original trademark is no longer in use (e.g. the company producing the original product no longer exists). A trademark particularly prevents the use of the name in a missleading way, and even if you indicate that it is a replica, this may still confuse customers, so it could be considered missleading. This is in particular true if you attempt to compete with the original manufacturer.

If the original product is no longer on the market but the original company still exists, it's probably the best and easiest way to just ask them for permission.

PMF
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  • Even if it is not confusing, it cannot be used for advertising. So for example you cannot tag your LEGO-Alternative-App "Lego" in an AppStore, no matter how blindingly obvious you make the actual page of the app to say "not Lego". The fact that people type in "Lego" and come to that page is enough to be considered infringement. – nvoigt Dec 13 '23 at 13:35
  • I thought trademarks ™ had no legal meaning and its only purpose is to denote something is a self-proclaimed name rather than a title (such as world sharpest knife™ because it's not actually the sharpest), whereas registered trademarks ® do have a legal meaning. – Clockwork Dec 13 '23 at 15:20
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    @Clockwork That likely depends on jurisdiction. As far as I know, a trademark doesn't need to be marked as such to have a legal meaning, as long as everybody is clear about it. Of course, registering a trademark removes all doubts about who the owner is, but that doesn't mean that if your brand name is not registered, anybody can use it. Details may vary, though. – PMF Dec 13 '23 at 15:28
  • If the original company no longer exists, perhaps some other company did get the trademarks, either by merging/buying the original company, or by buying just the trademark. – SJuan76 Dec 13 '23 at 15:54
  • @SJuan76 Therefore I marked this as an example. A trademark needs to be in active use for it to be valid, and one reason to believe this is not the case is if the company no longer exists. There was another question about this, but I can't currently find it. – PMF Dec 13 '23 at 16:08
  • The labels of store-brand medicines generally have language like "Compare with ". Do they need to get permission from the trademark holders to do this? Why would the trademark holder allow this to a cheaper competitor? – Barmar Dec 13 '23 at 16:29
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    @Barmar May I ask where you found that? One thing that might come into play here is whether the jurisdiction allows comparative advertising. That is very common in the US, but very restricted in the EU. – PMF Dec 13 '23 at 16:42
  • @PMF All the Walgreens and CVS store brand medicines in the US. E.g. Walgreens Men's 50+ Multivitamin says "Compare to Centrum® Silver® Men 50+" – Barmar Dec 13 '23 at 16:47
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Even producing and marketing the replica is almost certainly not allowed, unless with explicit permission from the original creator. And using their trademark would also require such explicit permission.

jwenting
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    There shouldn't be a problem with duplicating an existing product unless a) there are live patents involved or b) there is some form of protected trade dress (like the shape of a soda bottle). In the case of a replica (which implies that the original product is no longer on the market), this isn't likely an issue. – A. R. Dec 13 '23 at 17:34