|
|
The evolution of the Internet has given rise to some unique issues in relation to trademarks.
These issues exist because suddenly everyone is providing their goods and services over the same medium. Before the Internet, individuals and organisations were generally confined to the countries in which they choose to conduct business. With the Internet, it is difficult and/or impossible to avoid being visible in almost all jurisdictions. This can lead to conflict when there existing trademark rights in separate jurisidictions which conflict once the trademarks are used on the Internet.
Internet law is a branch of law that encompasses a number of different areas of law as they related to activity occuring over the Internet. Those areas of law include general commercial law, privacy law, copyright law, trademark law, domain name law, defamation and tax.
What is interesting about the Internet is that its development permits many different ways for individuals and organizations to interact with one another. For example, the Internet permits individuals to easily reach any number of other indiviuals around the World. On the other hand, much of the law relating to the Internet was developed before the Internet existed. This can create difficulties when activities on the Internet are shoe-horned into laws that were developed without the Internet in mind.
|
|
