| With the rapid development of high technology and the Internet,online games have mushroomed and taken a large market share of China’s entertainment industry.To obtain benefits,some ill-intentioned game manufacturers have resorted to unscrupulous means such as taking a free ride or copycatting famous brands.As a result,intellectual property disputes related to online games have increased rapidly,especially trademark disputes caused by game names.However,research into and legislative and judicial practice in intellectual property rights of online games in China still lag behind.Infringement determination of game names have been inconsistent.Due to the ambiguity in game name trademark infringement determination,determination standards,and the identification factors,in the field of game name trademark rights,there has been increasingly fierce confrontation among game manufacturers between protection and infringement.With the absence of sufficient laws and regulations,judicial practitioners rely on their own understanding in the determination of game name infringement,while it has become more and more difficult for game manufacturers to seek to protect game names in accordance with the trademark law.In order to better solve the problems in game name trademark infringement determination,this article takes into full consideration of the current situation to raise the following proposals.First,using the game name trademark infringement as the starting point and acting on the basis of academic research and judicial practice,the concept and attributes of game name trademarks should be defined,and the distinctions of trademarks in terms of game names.The two main factors in game name trademark infringement determination—trademark use and chances of confusion—should also be clarified.Second,to thoroughly review the judicial status of game name trademark infringement determination,sample cases from 2013 to 2019 can be selected for comprehensive analysis.By comparing the sample cases with the three well-known cases of Traversing the Wire,Legend of the Ancient Sword,and A Chinese Ghost Story,the guidelines of reaching verdicts and focus of disputes should be sorted out,and problems in judgment identified.Last but not the least,more recommendations are formulated from the perspectives of the six major identifying factors including behavior attributes of game name trademark use,behavior types,and chances of confusion in game names. |
