What are Trademark Infringement and Dilution?

Trademark infringement is the unauthorized use of a registered trademark or of a trademark that is confusingly similar to the registered mark. The unauthorized use may or may not be on the goods and services discussed in the trademark application; it may be on dissimilar goods and services under some conditions. The key result is confusion for consumers in the unauthorized mark.

Trademark dilution is more difficult to describe, as it is reserved for strong trademarks. Those trademarks with the strongest in identity in a market cannot be used in other noncompeting markets. This is to avoid "diluting" the strong, recognizable mark by its use in noncompeting markets.

Dilution is best described in an example. A mark that is recognizable is "Barbie." The mark "Barbie" brings up an idea of a girl's doll of an adult woman and friends in a pink box. Most likely, "Barbie" would not be allowed to be used in another market, even if it did not compete with children's toys because of how strong the mark is and how identifiable the mark is to the goods.

What is trade dress?

 
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