Nintendo trademark a deity

[Alby_da_Wolf]

Smashchu2 said:

Alby_da_Wolf said:

[...]

Not copyright, PATENT! And if you are sceptical, don't you remember that some lawyers managed to fool US and Australian patent offices and patent the wheel?  http://www.google.com/search?client=ubuntu&channel=fs&q=lawyer patents the wheel&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8  Just imagine what a good lawyer helped by a good theologist could do...

(1) First, why are we talking about Patents. That's not even part of this topic? Also, you didn't provide a case. (2) You just linked the word "lawyer."

(3) Some stuff on IP law (this is mostly for the US)

• US has a rule of "first to invent." Other nations use "first to file." Of course, the patent may have been sent but never approved
• You are confusing copyright with trademark. A copyright protects the work. So when Nintendo copyrights "Amaterasu," they are protecting the content (likely a game). A trademark protects the word. From what I've learn from a lawyer, the trademark must be unique.
• Patents only last 20 years
• "opyright law does not protect a bare phrase, slogan, or trade name."
• "Copyright law provides for compulsory licensing and royalty payments - there is no analogous concept in trademark law. Plus, the tests and definition of infringement are considerably different under copyright law and trademark law."

(1) I was answering a guy that explained that trademark gives only a minimum protection on the brand, but not enough to gather royalties.

(2) Sorry, I forgot that the stupid new post editor "eats" the PLUS signs, maiming Google links, here's a working link http://tinyurl.com/lawyers-patent-the-wheel without having to fill the spaces with the missing pluses

(3) About the rest, I never suggested copyright, that BTW isn't handled by USPTO. That joke of mine about patenting a deity, not just trademarking it, is obviously a joke and a provocation (wasn't it quite obvious?), but alas it's a joke based on a shameful reality, US patent system allowing software and other abstract patents is known to be widely abused and plenty of patents about existing, generic or obvious ideas have been not only allowed to be filed, but approved too, despite the laws and rules you correctly cite and that should prevent it, and remain valid until patent trolls try to extort money from enterprises or people willing and with enough money to fight back with a lawsuit to have these patents declared void.