About once a week or so, I check on the status of the various trademarks TSR3 has filed for. The abandonment of the Blackmoor trademark caught me by surprise, and I can't for the life of me, think of a single reason why it would be abandoned after publication unless there was pressure from WotC/Hasbro. Filing for a trademark has an associated cost, and once you've hit the publication step, you've sunk your cost and approval is all you are waiting for.
It's kinda like making your way through a dungeon, defeating the BBEG, then walking away from the treasure.
Anyone else interested in filing for a trademark they can later abandon? Blackmoor is up for grabs...
https://www.trademarkelite.com/trademark/trademark-detail/90276510/BLACKMOOR
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I'd just register all the abandoned TM's and only use the pay-for-use fees to fund GoFundMes for older creators. WOTC isn't going to stand up and help these folks out, so we should do it ourselves. (Yes, I know this is a noble thing, and in all reality, won't work, but it's a good thought, and would make WOTC look like really bad guys to try and stop it.)
ReplyDeleteMyself and my cohosts on The Tavern's YouTube Channel are in discussions on how we can help the older generation of game creators. More on that when we finalize details.
DeleteOne can't help but wonder if "Blackmore" "Blackmor" "Blackmorr" and/or "Blakkmorg with one of those little diacritical marks over the o like that other game" are currently copyrighted.
ReplyDeleteAlso, WotC's edgy alt dimension the Shadowfell is a pretty good synonym for Blackmoor, which is probably a deliberate joke.