BoatBanter.com - Goliath 1, David zip, and shame on Carver Boat Co. :-(

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Goliath 1, David zip, and shame on Carver Boat Co. :-(

We have a broker up in Anacortes, WA that has been around almost 20 years.
Nice bunch of low-key folks who sell primarily sailboats ( hey, everybody has a
cross to bear). The firm has always been known as Voyager Yachts, and Fred West
is the owner.

Last weekend at the Anacortes Floating Boat Show, I noticed that Voyager Yachts
had changed its name to West Yachts. Seemed like an odd move after building up
a decent reputation for a couple of decades, so I asked one of the brokers
about the name change. A tale of ridiculous corporate bullying ensued.....

Seems that Carver Yacht Company (one of the largest mass-pro powerboat
builders) has offered a Carver "Voyager" since about 1977, and continues to
offer a version of the vessel today. Carver got a bug up its butt to threaten
Voyager Yachts with a suit for trademark violation. Odds are probably good that
Voyager Yachts would win in court. They have used the name for almost 20 years,
"voyager" is a common nautical term, and Carver's "Voyager" is a model
designation, not the corporate tradename. Voyager Yachts is (primarily) a
sailboat brokerage, and would never have made any attempt to mislead the
public into a belief that Voyager Yachts was a Carver powerboat dealer. The
nearest Carver dealer is in Seattle, about 65 miles away. Looks like a pretty
strong position, at least to me. I'd side with the broker if I was on a jury.

Only problem, Voyager Yachts would have been required to defend its position in
court. Carver could fly out a planeload of staff attorneys who would otherwise
be sitting around on payroll with nothing to do.

Even if the court had decided in favor of Voyager Yachts, the local broker
would have had to absorb a fortune in legal fees. As it is, the local broker is
absorbing the expense of changing all his signs, phone listings, business
cards, stationary, etc etc etc to a new name.

I asked one of his salespeople, "Did anybody ever come in expecting you to be
representing Carver Voyager boats?"

"Nope. Not even once."

Score one for Goliath, zip for David on this round. I'm willing to bet that if
Fred West ever decides to represent a line of new powerboats, it's extremely
unlikely to be Carver. Is business so slow for Carver up this way that they
even have time to worry about a non consequential similarity in trade names?
You'd sue Brunswick or Genmar for calling a boat line "Voyager", but nobody
other than a ridiculous bully is going to hassle a small businessman in
Anacortes, WA.

Goliath 1, David zip, and shame on Carver Boat Co. :-(

Is business so slow for Carver up this way that they
even have time to worry about a non consequential similarity in trade names?

yes. it is *that* slow, according to broker reports.

Goliath 1, David zip, and shame on Carver Boat Co. :-(

Gould 0738 wrote:
... at the Anacortes Floating Boat Show, I noticed that Voyager Yachts
had changed its name to West Yachts

That is ridiculous. But I don't know how things would have stood in
court, it's a dice throw. I've seen some engineering contract disputes
get settled in extremely stupid ways.

Here in out town there used to be a laid back little guitar shop Gibson
Music. About two years ago Gibson Guitars (which was recently under new
ownership) got bit by the same stupid bug and threatened to sue. The
owner, whose last name was really Gibson, closed up shop and moved on. Sad.

I really don't understand what is gained by this kind of move. One less
yacht brokerage is not going to increase Carver sales, and one less
guitar store is certainly not going to help Gibson. Maybe it's something
in the water?

Fresh Breezes- Doug King

Goliath 1, David zip, and shame on Carver Boat Co. :-(

Family names are exempt for trade mark or name infringments. You don't even
have to do a public notice of your intent to use you family name as your
business name.

However, don't try to get 'tricky' line that kid that registered a interenet
domain as MicRowSoft.com (not sure of the spelling).. Seem his first name
was Mike and last name was Rowe (or something like that).. Anyway he lost in
court but MicroSoft gave him some other concesions, out of the goodness of
their hearts..

I have registered my business name in both Calif and WA and each time it
involved publishing a notice of intent to use that name. The state licensing
offices also verify if it has already been registered at the state level..

However, such an action only protects me from another business using the
name in those states.. If a business from outside these two states has
TradeMarked or registered this name with the feds. then I'm scewed if they
move into Calif. or WA... Even if I had state register it before them..

I've never been challenged and wouldn't have any 'good' reason to fight it
if it came to that. I only maintain my business lic. for wholesale and
business discount advantages.

Steve
s/v Good Intentions

Goliath 1, David zip, and shame on Carver Boat Co. :-(

They can't trademark the family name, it's self, but they could chanlenge
him for using the name Guitars, since Gibson Guitars was most likely already
registered

This little guy could have renamed his business Gibson Music, etc. But they
can't keep him from using his own name.

Steve

Goliath 1, David zip, and shame on Carver Boat Co. :-(

Steve wrote:
They can't trademark the family name, it's self, but they could chanlenge
him for using the name Guitars, since Gibson Guitars was most likely already
registered

This little guy could have renamed his business Gibson Music, etc. But they
can't keep him from using his own name.

Well, that's what I thought too. BTW he did not call his shop Gibson
Guitars, it was Gibson Music. But it's too late now.

DSK

Goliath 1, David zip, and shame on Carver Boat Co. :-(

Damn, a guitar suit, and I always thought guitars came in cases.

--
Capt. Frank

__c
\ _ | \_
__\_| oooo \_____
~~~~|______________/ ~~~~~
www.home.earthlink.net/~aartworks
"DSK" wrote in message
...
Gould 0738 wrote:
... at the Anacortes Floating Boat Show, I noticed that Voyager Yachts
had changed its name to West Yachts

That is ridiculous. But I don't know how things would have stood in
court, it's a dice throw. I've seen some engineering contract disputes
get settled in extremely stupid ways.

Here in out town there used to be a laid back little guitar shop Gibson
Music. About two years ago Gibson Guitars (which was recently under new
ownership) got bit by the same stupid bug and threatened to sue. The
owner, whose last name was really Gibson, closed up shop and moved on.
Sad.

I really don't understand what is gained by this kind of move. One less
yacht brokerage is not going to increase Carver sales, and one less
guitar store is certainly not going to help Gibson. Maybe it's something
in the water?

Fresh Breezes- Doug King

Goliath 1, David zip, and shame on Carver Boat Co. :-(

You wrote:

Score one for Goliath, zip for David on this round ... nobody
other than a ridiculous bully is going to hassle a small businessman in
Anacortes, WA.

In the UK, there are far fewer cases of this nature, for one simple
reason: If I sue you and I lose, I pay my costs and your costs too.

Why don't we do this in the US? Because, of course, attorneys would
do less business handling frivolous cases; and so their lobby ensures
that things stay as they are.

My guess is that this case has more to do with Carver's lawyers than
Carver. A Carver attorney says to the big boss, "This brokerage
represents a potential threat to a Carver trademark." The big boss
doesn't know if that's true, and s/he only has one person to ask --
the attorney who just raised the issue. So to be on the safe side,
the attorney gets the go-ahead.

Most of the contracts I sign these days come about because one
attorney has sat down and thought carefully through all the unpleasant
things that another attorney could do to hurt me or the other party.
I've come to see that it's America's version of redistribution of
income. In the UK, they do it with modified socialism. In the US, we
do it by suing one another.

E.J. Bleendreeble
http://www.casualsailor.com