The National Association of Realtors is disputing The Real Estate Cyberspace Society's use of the servicemark E-PRO. Real Estate Cyberspace's founder, Jack Peckham, says his organization has "prior use" of the servicemark.

According to Peckham, the servicemark E-PRO has been in use by his organization since early 1998 where it has periodically been used to describe products and services delivered by the Society to members. The Society is funded through annual memberships of $149.95, and does not charge additionally for E-PRO products and services.

An early Internet pioneering organization, the Society's mission is to help its members "leverage their effectiveness, visibility, professionalism and earnings by using the latest up to the minute Real Estate Cyberspace tools, strategies and services in the E-PRO^tm ToolKit they receive with Society membership."

The Society estimates that the "value of tools and services available to Society members at well over $2000 per year."

E-PRO as conceived by the NAR is an Internet-based educational course that results in a certification that distinguishes the bearer as Internet-trained to consumers. The NAR debuted its E-PRO certification program at its Orlando, Florida convention in November 1999. The certification is designed to "help real estate professionals thrive in the competitive world of online real estate," according to the NAR's e-PRO site. It is the only certification offered directly by the NAR. All other certifications and designations are offered through subsidiaries.

Peckham points out that his "prior use" predates the NAR's by as much as 20 months, but neither Peckham nor the NAR responded in time for publication with proof of servicemark ownership.

Recently, Peckham says he received a cease and desist letter from the NAR over the use of the E-PRO servicemark. In response, Peckham has issued the following statement:

"We have received a rather threatening note from the administrators of the National Association of Realtors (NAR) e-PRO certification program followed by a similar letter from NAR.

"The Real Estate CyberSpace Society established its technology designation program in early 1997. The RECS (Real Estate CyberSpace Specialist) designation has been awarded to over 4000 real estate professionals since them. In addition to the RECS designation the Society delivers a wide array of tools and services to Society members.

It has been the policy of the Society to continually develop and deliver new tools to its members designed to empower them with superior networking and client delivery systems. Over the years the Society has developed a ToolBox containing over a dozen quite valuable tools and services without raising its annual dues from the original $149.95 per annum.

"Unfortunately when the National Association of Realtors (NAR) decided to compete with the Society's RECS designation it chose the name e-PRO to signify its certification, despite that fact that the Society had been using the trademark well before giving the Society superior rights to the mark.

"Over the past 2 years we have had discussions with NAR and their representatives regarding the possibility of creating arrangements that would have alleviated the conflict created by the NAR use of our mark, but our suggestions were dismissed. Earlier this year NAR requested that we remove our E-PRO mark from the Society's site at www.REcyber.com which request, because of our superior rights, we obviously refused. Now that we have commenced a membership campaign displaying our rightful use of our E-PRO mark it saddens us that NAR and its representatives are threatening this rightfully established use.

"The Society had been delivering tools and services to Real Estate Professionals since 1996, providing them with a distinct competitive advantage. Society members leverage their effectiveness, visibility, professionalism and earnings by using the latest up to the minute Real Estate Cyberspace tools, strategies and services in the Society's E-PRO ToolKit they receive with Society membership.

Peckham says the matter is now in the hands of his trademark attorney, whom he says has written a response to the NAR, and he would not respond further to Realty Times' questions regarding his future actions.

The NAR could not be reached in time for comment before publication.

Published: June 5, 2003

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