[zachrose]

I have an NPM package named "barrel"[0], which apparently is also a trademark for some kind of sunglasses company. I would expect there to be some kind of fair-use-like rule for common nouns that are used in different industries or domains?

[0] https://www.npmjs.com/package/barrel

[masklinn]

It's more than fair use, trademarks are very narrowly interpreted, and in the case of domains (I'd expect package registries to be similar) the main criteria is wilful confusion (aka is the current domain owner trying to sow or encourage confusion with the mark).

[Amorymeltzer]

At least in the US, the rule is essentially confusion: is a consumer likely to be confused? In both cases (yours and kik) the likelihood of real confusion is unlikely, although admittedly sunglasses are a couple steps more removed than a messaging app.

Good reading is the Apple V Apple series of court cases: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Corps_v_Apple_Computer

[nickodell]

True, but the brouhaha over kik was over npm's module name dispute policy.

So, it seems like the operative questions are 1) How likely is X to create an npm package? and 2) If a node.js developer types `npm install X`, are they more likely to expect X's package, or my package?

For the parent commenter, 1 is a definite no, and 2 is kinda wishy-washy.

[michaelmrose]

I don't think anyone on earth installs a package with npm without specifically knowing what they are installing. This is in contrast to users going to foo.com expecting to find foo corps website.

Going to foo.com is a very serviceable strategy for getting foo corps website and if it's not you have invested 2 seconds and risked nothing.

Contrast that with npm unless you specifically know the package by name getting foo corps software by npm install foo is a total crap shoot that is only somewhat likely to succeed will cost you as much as a minute or more of your time and is installing software considered by most technical people to be risky.

Nobody is likely to confuse foo package with foo Corp unless the description of the package is unclear thus name and description should be considered together to decide if confusion exists.

[ChikkaChiChi]

But when you saw the headlines, "Internet broken due to Kik package dispute" it is reasonable to expect confusion with the trademarked company and software.

[michaelmrose]

Trademarks exist to prevent confusion in trade not in people who read headlines and not articles.

It's more likely that most had heard of neither and now way more clear on who both parties are.