Registered Trademark- can I use a word that is a registered trademark as part of my registered trademark?

Trademarks are product and service specific. So if, for example, Koozie is owned by a compeny that sells perfume, and Redneck Koozie is owned by a company that sells lessons in being a rodeo competitor, the USPTO might allow both registrations because the 1st word is different evewn though the word Koozie is distinctive and arbitrary, and the goods/services are so dissimilar as to be unlikely to case confusion. But maybe both Koozie TMs are owned by the same company, so there's no confusion for any competitor to assert. No matter who owns these Koozie TMs, you probably wouldn't be able to register another TM using the word Koozie for any goods or service that are the same or confusingly siilar to the ones already in use. Choosing a TM isn't a DIY job. It's your business's most important decision, and it can be very costly in terms of time, money and effort if you choose a name that's not available and not viable. You need professional help, especially if you aren't quite sure about the basics of TM law.

Without more information about the goods and/or services covered by the registered trademarks and your goods and services, it is impossible to answer this question. You need to provide more detail regarding that information and much more for any attorney to give you a credible opinion. You should contact an attorney directly as no attorney will be able to give you a credible response online.

It depends. The key issue is whether your use of Koozie in your trademark would result in a likelihood of consumer confusion with the Redneck Koozie trademark. If there is a risk of consumer confusion, then you cannot use the word in your trademark. You need to understand some basics about trademark law. Trademark rights are not derived from registration---they are derived from use in commerce. A trademark is a name, logo, or mark (or combination of them) that become associated in the minds of consumers with goods or services provided by a specific company or business. When a mark becomes very famous (for example, Coca Cola), no one else can use that mark for any purpose because consumer confusion is inevitable. For marks that are not famous, the scope of trademark protection depends on the nature and extent of the use of the trademark in commerce. For example, if a company uses a trademark only in one local community and does not operate elsewhere, its trademark rights might be limited to the particularly community in question because consumers in other communities would not be confused. Likewise, a trademark might be used with respect to specific goods (let's say food and beverages). Someone else might be able to use the same trademark to sell goods of a completely different time (let's say, furniture and mattresses). Registration of a trademark with the federal trademark office gives you procedural advantages in court, but it does not necessarily mean that the registrant is the only person who can use the trademark---someone else who uses the trademark in connection with completely different goods and services in a different geographic area may be permitted to do so because there is no likelihood of confusion. Thus, the main issue here is whether there might be consumer confusion between Redneck Koozie and "Monkey Koozie". If your business sells products or services that are the same or similar to those provided by Redneck Koozie, then there is likely to be consumer confusion. For example, if Redneck Koozie is the name of a line of beverages and your company makes food products, chances are that there will be consumer confusion if you use the name Koozie (even if you use a different name with it and even if you sell different food products). If, however, the two companies have nothing in common, produce or sell completely different products and services, compete in different geographic areas, and have completely different customer bases, then you might be able to use the name Koozie in your trademark. Determination of whether there is "consumer confusion" is a complex, difficult and sophisticated issue of fact and law---and you cannot make this determination on your own--rather, if you want to proceed in this direction, it is essential that you retain trademark counsel to represent you.

The answer: maybe, but you should definitely retain a lawyer. A thirty-second search of Google suggests that koozie is the generic term for the class of goods upon which the Koozie registration is issued (http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2009/01/04/warm_cooler/?page=full). Generic terms for marked goods are incapable of supporting a trademark registration. However, this is merely an EXTREMELY TENTATIVE conclusion based upon VERY LIMITED research. Ultimately you are asking a question that concerns the validity of a trademark registration, as well as whether your potential trademark would infringe on either of two other marks. If you are intending to use Monkey Koozie (or something similar) as a trademark given these other potential trademarks and registrations, you should retain IP counsel that is able to look into 1) whether the Koozie registration remains valid, 2) whether your intended trademark causes a likelihood of confusion in the marketplace with other pre-existing trademarks, and 3) how you should proceed. You are not going to get answers to those question on , as they involve non-trivial legal research and analysis. I strongly recommend you retain IP counsel licensed in your jurisdiction. Good luck in your endeavor! - Neil Wehneman