Trademark Infringement and Social Media

While the nigh countless advantages and benefits of social media for business success cannot be denied, companies today face many challenges in the playing field as well. These challenges originate both within and outside the company, making it quite complicated for the relevant authorities to deal with them. The growth and increased use of social networking platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc has not only made the interaction between the user and company easier but has also brought with them a number of risks.

Organizations aim at streamlining communication between the consumer and seller. But having their trademarks infringed by consumers or even their own employees on social media would be utterly devastating and lead to hiring lawyers and expensive court cases.

As Daniel J. Boorstin said,

“An image… is not simply a trademark, a design, a slogan or an easily remembered picture. It is a studiously crafted personality profile of an individual, institution, corporation, product or service”.

A company for example, needs to bear in mind the two most important aspects with respect to social media’s infringement on trademark. Firstly, the different ways your trademarks can potentially be infringed by others. Secondly, how your social media actions may unintentionally result in a breach of some other company’s trademark rights.

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