[OpenID board] Trademark problem?

[Dick Hardt]

On 2-Dec-08, at 5:51 PM, Eddy Nigg (StartCom Ltd.) wrote:

>>  However the original comment wasn't constructive for me. IMO  
>> trademark issues are certainly something which might affect many of  
>> us...

Of course they do.

>
>
>> Remember that we are all volunteers and our ED is out of commission.
>>
>
> Don't even mention the volunteers excuse, because it sucks.  
> Corporate members aren't volunteering as far as I can tell, second,  
> if time-constraints or other issues prevent a board member from  
> functioning, he should return his seat to the foundation and  
> disqualify himself.

I am volunteering. I have been putting in 4-8 hours per week for the  
last few months. Pretty high for a volunteer. There is only so much  
one can do in that amount of time.

>
>
>> The object in dealing with the trademark issue is to protect the
>> OpenID brand. This is in the best interest of the community.
>>
>
> Indeed!
>
>> If the discussion about how to deal with it is public, then the other
>> party can be fully aware of our strategy -- putting the Foundation at
>> considerable disadvantage.
>>
>
> I don't agree with this at all. Trademark laws and policies shall be  
> voiced clearly and prominently.

I agree with this. See the comment I made about polices earlier. This  
is not what my comment said though.

> In this particular case I'm interested to know which trademark they  
> violated.

um, it was the OpenID trademark per the original, public message about  
this.

> Trademark(s) are a matter of the foundation and its members,  
> including eventual violations. Any party shall be aware of the  
> dealings in this regard. (Besides that most of us aren't lawyers -  
> which would take care of it eventually, but the fact that a  
> violation was detected (if and when and why) and that it's going to  
> be pursued shall be of no disadvantage - quite the opposite I think)

The original message showed that a company OpenQ had announced a  
product called OpenID. This message was public.
How the board was going to approach OpenQ was moved to board-private.


>
>
>> There is a committee working on a clear Trademark Policy for OpenID.
>> We don't have that at this point. Agree it is important. If you have
>> time to help out, let David Recordon know.
>>
>
> I shall be to your service on this particular issue. Tell me how to  
> join.

Contact David at recordond at gmail.com

>
>
>> In summary, we are doing the best we can as volunteers.
>
> Nonono....stop the whining! And perhaps it should be made clear  
> upfront to all of the nominees, you volunteer because you can, and  
> not because you can't !

I bring up the volunteer aspect to highlight that resources are  
limited. There is only so much that can be done and we prioritize  
where efforts are spent.



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