Yet another copyright question:
What are the legal ramifications of using a copyrighted name as your user name on these message boards? For example, if someone registers as “Mickey Mouse,” would the Chicago Reader be obliged to deny that user the use of that name?
I’m guessing a lot of existing names are duplicates of trademarks.
Trademarks are not exclusive, however. John Q. Mouse can name his kid Mickey without permission. Jack Kleenex can start Kleenex Dry Cleaners.
And there are many Best stores in every phonebook.
I have two company names that I use that are unique in California, but not in the world. At some point I may have to defend them, based on first-filing dates, etc. if one of the namesake companies starts up here.
There are several companies in my Business directory just called “Tshirts” for example. None has exclusive right to a common word, but just for their specific product within a specific territory.