Creating Software for a Trademarked Game

[JasonJack]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? South Carolina

Hello all,

Quick question...I want to create some software for a very old game most of us have played at some point, Skee-ball, but it appears the game is actually trademarked by a sole company. I had no idea!

Does the trademark stand for the Skee-ball name, or the game as well?

What if I used another name for the software I want to create? Would this be okay or is this still considered infringement?

I don't want to do this illegally, so I'd like to cover all of my bases before proceeding.

 

[FlyingRon]

Trademarks are for what they say they are. The Skee-Ball name is trademarked. You can't use it. The game once was patented but that expired a long time ago. You could build a similar game and call it something else if you like.

 

[JasonJack]

Thank you so much Ron for your swift reply. I suppose changing the name to "Ski" as opposed to "Skee" is cutting it to close though?

I look forward to spending more time here and sending a few friends over.

 

[FlyingRon]

Yes, that would definitely cause a confusion with the real mark. By the way, they also trademarked skee-bowl I think. I'd use something unrelated like "Ring Bowling" or something like that.