The Utah State Legislature has passed a Trademark Protection Act that creates a new type of mark called an electronic registration mark; it probably will not survive a Constitutional test according to the state's own general counsel.
Trademark Protection Act in Utah would require search engines to check a database of registered trademarks to avoid displaying ads in this way.
The profitability angle for Utah can't be ignored. An annual fee of no more than $250 would be charged for each registered electronic mark under the law. Utah would reap an enormous windfall from brand name advertisers who wish to circumvent Google's lawful practice of
Search engines would either have to check every ad request to see if a user in Utah was making it, then check the search terms against the database of electronic registration marks for possible trademark issues.
Utah's General Counsel office also considered the possibility that search engines would have to check every user query against the Utah database to avoid the need to determine someone's location. "Any benefit to the state from this legislation is likely substantially outweighed by the burden on every Internet search engine or similar system to re- engineer its systems and constantly check the search terms or the location of a user," they noted.
That potential would trigger the dormant aspect of the Commerce Clause. The Electronic Frontier Foundation
It's difficult to see Utah's Trademark Protection Act as anything more than a blatant money grab. Let the Constitutional challenges begin.
No comments yet. Be the first to comment!