Please Don’t Use the Name “EarthBucks” in Your Company Name & Here’s What to Do Instead

Please don’t use the name “EarthBucks” in your company name because I regard that as a trademark owned by my company. Instead, you should use the abbreviation “EBX” in your company name. I plan to leave the “EBX” acronym “unprotected” for anyone to use. Or better yet, you should create an entirely custom brand specifically for your business.

EarthBucks is Not Bitcoin

Although EarthBucks is inspired by Bitcoin in many ways, it is also intentionally different in other ways. The disputes over the name “Bitcoin” have been a source of confusion, leading to a status quo that regards “Bitcoin” as a blockchain that is almost completely useless and totally unlike the original Bitcoin. But who am I to say? Part of the issue, in my opinion, is that Satoshi Nakamoto left the project very early and did not create any clear structure to manage intellectual property (IP) such as the trademark on the name “Bitcoin”.

”EarthBucks” is a Trademark

For EarthBucks, although some of the software is MIT licensed open-source software, just like Bitcoin, the name is absolutely not something I regard as being “open” in any way. The name “EarthBucks” is a standard trademark of my company, presently owned by Ryan X. Charles LLC. Although I have not yet applied to create a registered trademark, I will almost certainly do so at some point. Either way, the name “EarthBucks” is a trademark whether it is registered or not.

Use “EBX” Instead, or Create a Custom Brand

Instead of using the name “EarthBucks” in your company name, which is my trademark, you should use the acronym “EBX”. I do not regard that acronym as my trademark. For instance, suppose you wish to create an exchange. Instead of calling it “EarthBucks Exchange”, which would violate my trademark, you should call it “EBX Exchange”, which does not violate my trademark. Even better, instead of using the name “EBX”, you should just create an entirely custom brand specifically for your business. You can honestly mention that you support EarthBucks in your documentation as long as you don’t make it sound like your company is EarthBucks or officially affiliated with EarthBucks.

Conclusion

EarthBucks is like Bitcoin in some ways, but the brand is absolutely not one of them. The name “EarthBucks” is a trademark of my company and should not be used in the company name of any other business. Instead, you should use the acronym “EBX” in your company name, or better yet, create an entirely custom brand specifically for your business.