The 4th R trademark

One of the more interesting e-mails (spams? scams?) I've received lately:

Dear Sir,

We are the proprietor of the Fourth R trademark (registration no. 1763375).

Widespread use of the Fourth R trade mark has been made, to the extent that this trademark has acquired an extensive reputation and goodwill. The Fourth R trademark is, accordingly, also a well-known mark for all relevant purposes of trademark law.

It has come to our attention that you are using the 4th R trademark.

This trademark is confusingly and/or deceptively similar to our Fourth R trademark and also constitutes a reproduction or imitation thereof.

In the circumstances, your use of the 4th R trademark will constitute an infringement of our registered and common law rights.

In the circumstances, we demand that you immediately:

1.    Cease all use of the trademark 4th R;

2.    Deliver-up for destruction all material to which the 4th R trademark or any other mark confusingly or deceptively similar to our trademark has been applied;

3.    Withdraw, cancel and/or delete any corporate names, domain names, trademark applications and/or trademark registrations for or including the 4th R trademark;

4.    Undertake, in writing, never in future to make any use of the 4th R trademark, whether within any corporate name, trading name, trading style, domain name or otherwise.

We await to hear from you by no later than close of business on March 31st, 2008.

This is written without prejudice to our rights, all of which are hereby expressly reserved.

Sincerely,
Robert McCauley
President, Fourth R Inc.
11410 NE  124th Street  #142
Kirkland, WA  98034
Rob@FourthR.com
(425) 765-9969

I did indeed title a column "The 4th R" (not Fourth R) once upon a time when writing about Research. But I'm not alone in using this term. A Google search of "4th R" turned up 14,400,000 hits.

And what were those "4th Rs?"  Recreation, Religion, human Rights, aRt, Recycling... well, you get the idea. My guess is horticulturists may see Raspberries as the 4th R - following Rhubarb, Radishes, and Radicchio. It's not exactly a novel concept.

I am not sure what exactly McCauley hopes to get from this e-mail except ill-will. Not exactly something one who hopes to sell to education wants, yah'd think.

If "4th R" can be trademarked, I can trademark "Dear Sir," dontcha think?  Watch it, letter writers!

Comments

[Doug Johnson]

Interesting (and validating) comment here by John Connell from Scotland:

http://www.johnconnell.co.uk/blog/?p=736

Doug

[Pat]

Sounds like a scam to me. And what is this is the first step of the scam. What if you stop and desist and then they want money and then they..and so on.This is not the first time I've heard about an email like this.

[Doug Johnson]

Hi Pat,

The company looks legit (from its website anyway.) I haven't heard from them since, so I don't know what is up. I am pretty scam-proof, I like to think.

All the best,

Doug