Re: Commentry on A call for a vote on the Rating System.

[Chris <chris@starforge.co.uk>]

#15-Sep-01# Message from *Steve Baker*:
Hi Steve,

>
> That's possible - in which case (as I proposed) we'd change whatever is
> necessary to make it legal.  We just need to open a thesaurus and come
> up with some other letters.

> Personally, I doubt you could trademark that...but you are right - we
> should check.

And I have done. You can either search on TESS for "ESRB", or look at
trademarks 75523049, 75522996, 75577995, 75522721, 75522722, 75533748,
75227211/10/09/08/07/06 If you look at the trademark they explicitly say 
that no claim is made to the exculsive right to use "TEEN", "MATURE", 
"KIDS TO ADULTS", "ADULTS ONLY", "RATING PENDING", "EARLY CHILDHOOD". 
but there is the direct implication that they claim rights to the 
abbreviated versions in rating marks. IANAL, but I expect it could be
argued that using EC/RP/AO/KA/T/M in any mark which serves as a rating
indicator could land us in trouble. I would recommend we use the 
following instead:

YC - Young Children
CA - Children to adults
Ta - Teenagers    (this is the shakey one. Could use A for adolescent?)
YA - Young adults (mature teenagers. Assuming we equate adults with maturity)
A  - Adults only
UR - Unrated/Rating pending

Sound sensible?

> 
>> This is my major concern with the single letter mark, it opens the door
>> to trademark infringment suits by ESRB (just as showing only a single U,
>> PG, 12, 6, 18 could get us into hot water with the BBFC, or four boxes
>> with ages in would with ELSPA).

> Yes - but if you looked everywhere in the world you'd find that every
> letter of the alphabet would be used somewhere.

That's not my point though. Trademarks are tricky because you can have
similar marks provided they are for different goods and services. If the G&S
are the same then you have to be far, far more careful. 


> Well, if we can find someone who is willing and able to do it - I don't
> think the time it takes is (by itself) an issue - there is no urgency
> here.

Well he says he can do it quite quickly. I'll get him to do some sketches,
scan them and post them so that we can comment on them.

Chris
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