As it turned out, the name “Bitcoin” has a “host”, and so he jealously guards his property, even asked one of the sellers to cease its illegal operation.
Some British company, called A. B. C. IPHoldings South West has filed an application for trademark registration under the name “Bitcoin” in the intellectual property office (IPO) the UK in December last year. However, the wide public it became known only after one of the sellers, distributing t-shirts that say “Bitcoin” on the online platform Etsy, 25 may received the following letter:
“To our client realized that you distribute the goods with the words “bitcoin” on the website Etsy.co.uk. Our client did not give you permission to operate its brand “Bitcoin” and therefore, pursuant to article 10(1) of the trade marks Act 1994, your actions are tantamount to violation of his rights.”
Free almost no information about this company, but data about the patent for a product called “Westworld”. April 13, in the documentation of the intellectual property office there is a record of registration of the trademark “Bitcoin” number UK00003279106:
“Trademark application for which was filed in December last year, includes a list of goods which can not be used without permission the word “Bitcoin”. Among them — almost all finished products,” — said in the IPO document.
It is noteworthy that IP Holdings was the first company that managed to obtain the right to trademark “Bitcoin”, but not the only one who tried to do it.
So last refusal for registration of this name as a trademark was received by the company Urban Trend has applied to the Bureau of patents and trademarks United States in 2015, and the Russian M-Group, has filed an application to Rospatent in 2016.
Anticipating the excitement, which may arise around copyright “Bitcoin”, a non-profit organization The Bitcoin Foundation three years ago asked users and the company not to claim a copyright on the term.
“The Bitcoin Foundation believes that the name “Bitcoin” should not be anyone’s intellectual property, since it is a rather generic term, similar to those used for the Euro, dollar and other Fiat currencies,” wrote representatives of the Fund in the statement published on the organization’s website in January 2015.
