Atari going after retro community?

On 8/24/2011 3:06 PM, Dave McGuire wrote: I'm not saying that I agree with their tone and methods, but there are legitimate reasons (that you would appreciate) for doing things like this. If they fail to show vigorous defense of the name, they open the door for other firms to use the name for monetary gain for products of dubious value without hope of winning a suit against them. Yes, Atari could (and would) file a suit against the firms, but they do so in a significantly weakened position. Thus, even though they risk alienating their core customers, these letters form a paper trail that show the court a vigorous defense. My point: If you don't want some dodgy company to make a crappy product and trick buyers into thinking it's an Atari item, consider your position on these C&Ds carefully. I see it not as a "desperate grab for money" as much as a "ensuring no one else tries to make a quick grab fr cash using the name". Again, I see this as a "robot" email, and it did not take into account the particulars of the site. As well, vigorously defending your name does not have to mean sending out nasty letters like this. Finally, ignoring it is not a good idea. Retaining an attorney, expensive though it might be, to draft a competent letter demanding to know the details of the infringement (written in proper legalese, as someone else suggested) will quickly deal with this issue. No, IANAL, but I have done the research, since I use the Commodore name in certain product listings and such. If this sort of thing becomes more prevalent (which it might), enthusiasts might need to form "associations" that can handle protecting or dealing with these things. The links would be on a association's site (portal), etc. Jim -- Jim Brain brain at jbrain.com www.jbrain.com