Similar name or not?

[chadrockman]

Say I want to name my band, "The Red" but there is a band called, "The Red is you". They have a couple CDs out on Amazon and CDnow and I am just starting. I plan on going national, well that is my intent. Would I be safe if I decide to trademark or are the names too similar? They do not have their name trademarked. However, I am more concerned with the name being conflicting.

Thank You.
Chad from Louisiana

[ariastar]

If the names in the same industry are similar enough that they might cause confusion, you're out of luck. A band called "The Red if You" may be known by many fans simple as "The Red." Try naming a band GNR and saying it stands for the names of the three band members. Guns 'n' Roses would win that one since, even though their full name is Guns 'n' Roses, many fans refer to them as GNR. (Plus they might have trademarked it, but even if they haven't...)

If you pick a band name similar to one in use by another band, yes, you will come up against issues. They've been using it long enough to establish is as theirs. The only way to know who'd win would be to let it go to court though. Do you have that kind of money? Better not risk it.