OK, Counselors. I ask this question merely as a thought exercise, so forget about any tacit contract thing (i.e., $$$) because it ain't happening here. Recently, there has been some talk regarding original equipment (OE) parts sold by the manufacturer of a vehicle through their dealership network as opposed to original equipment manufacturer (OEM) parts which are made by the same vendor who supplies the vehicle manufacturer, but which are sold to the end user via the aftermarket parts distribution network. The OE parts are branded with the car company's trademark, while the OEM parts are identified with the OEM's trademark. Now, for the hypothetical: Would a prudent and conservatively dressed attorney, retained by a car company, advise his client to include in his contract with any OEM a prohibition forbidding the manufacture of parts by the OEM to the same specification which the car company had formulated and for distribution by anyone other than the car company? I know if I were as bright as Soichiro Honda or Dr. Porsche, I certainly would want such intellectual property, which came from hours of expensive research, testing and technical writing, to be protected. Rich |
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