The world has changed materially since the foundation of traditional
trademark laws, according to which the purpose of a trademark was to
serve as a differentiating source indicator, preventing source confusion
in the marketplace. Traditionally, trademarks protected the public from
likelihood of confusion, assisted in consumer decisions and reduced
search costs.
The need to award a special scope of protection to famous trademarks
from use on non-competing goods was first discussed in Kodak in 1898,
holding that the use of the word Kodak for a bicycle company does not
mislead consumers but takes unfair advantage of reputation. However, the
most significant point in the evolution of dilution, in its early
stages, was the case of Odol decided in 1924, which was the first to
acknowledge the need to protect the advertising power of trademarks from
being diluted, even in the absence of a likelihood of confusion.
This book will provide that dilution is a 'sui generis' brand remedy
applicable to reputed trademarks in accordance to their aggregated
inherent and acquired strength. The book will address the non-harmonised
nature of dilution, which reflects a problem in an age of borderless
trade and cyber commerce and emphasises the need to answer the question:
To what extent should reputed trademarks be protected by dilution beyond
the traditional trademark protection from likelihood of confusion?
The book includes a proposal for an operative legal framework based on
conclusions and distinctions derived from the comparison of dilution, as
adopted and interpreted in different areas of the world, comparative
case studies and comparison with neighbouring legal rights, such as Tort
Law, Unfair Competition, Moral Rights, Equitable Rights, Publicity
Rights and Unlawful Enrichment.
