Tips from the Insider: Solicitations Not Always a Scam

This morning we received a facsimile from a South Korean firm purporting to offer its services concerning opposition of a mark pending before the Korean Intellectual Property Office (“KIPO”) which, in their opinion, would create a likelihood of confusion with one of our client’s marks applied for here in the U.S.

Familiar with scams such as “monitoring services” which are presented to our clients under the guise of fake intellectual property office symbols or “domain name registration services” from the Far East we were naturally skeptical of this blatant solicitation.

Upon review, however, it appears that the solicitation is legitimate and that our client’s mark may well be in jeopardy in the Democratic Republic of Korea.
Against this backdrop, we should always be leery of any overt solicitations concerning our intellectual property rights. This must now be taken with a grain of salt that truly legitimate services are out there and should not be so confused with those with lesser business practices.

As always, if you have any questions concerning a solicitation or any other trademark matter do not hesitate to contact us here at The Trademark Company.

The Trademark Company