Trademarks are different than copyright... AND in certina countries you have to include specific language in the copyright or tm notice of it is not protected...
In short, it's a mess. Trademark and copyright give you certain advantages in a legal sense, but to truly enforce them you have to have deeeeeeeeep pockets.
I developed a RPG (the old kind paper and dice)called Wizards and Warriors. Publication led to serious hassles with a game developer that had a lame product. I saw a ripoff system published about a year later in the UK that was complete BS... I never had the money to sue or even get a lawyer to write a cease and desist letter.
What can I do? I am not Microsoft and Apple suing over the trash can idea in a GUI they both copied from XParc!
In short, it's a mess. Trademark and copyright give you certain advantages in a legal sense, but to truly enforce them you have to have deeeeeeeeep pockets.
I developed a RPG (the old kind paper and dice)called Wizards and Warriors. Publication led to serious hassles with a game developer that had a lame product. I saw a ripoff system published about a year later in the UK that was complete BS... I never had the money to sue or even get a lawyer to write a cease and desist letter.
What can I do? I am not Microsoft and Apple suing over the trash can idea in a GUI they both copied from XParc!