The Windows Subsystem for Android now runs Android 13 in beta

Re:The Windows Subsystem for Android now runs Android 13 in ... by czx4f4bd on Monday December 19, 2022 @10:27PM (#34061184)

I don't think that's what descriptive fair use means.

> Descriptive Fair Use: Found at 15 U.S.C. § 1115(b)(4), the descriptive fair use defense protects your ability to use ordinary words to describe your own goods or services, even if those words happen to be part of someone's trademark.

https://www.dmlp.org/legal-guide/using-trademarks-others

Since the Windows Subsystem for Android actually runs Android, "Windows Subsystem for Android" is a product name and not just a description, and "Android" isn't a generic descriptive term in this context, it seems to me that Microsoft is using Google's Android trademark in a way that isn't protected as fair use.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:The Windows Subsystem for Android now runs Android 13 in ... by gpm on Tuesday December 20, 2022 @01:16AM (#34062242)

Right, I should have said "nominative" rather than "descriptive", at least as far as US law is concerned. It's directly below "descriptive" in your link.

Really I wasn't trying to name the exact defence but gesture at the principal that trade marks prevent competitors from using names that might confuse customers, but they don't prevent competitors (or anyone else) from talking about the product. It was just a coincidence that I used a word that happened to also be the name of a specific kind of fair use.

[ Parent | on HN ]