Keeper/Moon Cup/Mooncup

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Keeper-Moon Cup-Mooncup
This page is to provide information on this confusing situation.

I would like to firstly point out that I am not claiming to hold a neutral point of view in this, I have a personal point of view on this subject. Despite that view, which I am not trying to assert onto anyone, I intend to give the details of this situation, in as much of an unbiased way as I can, so that readers may be aware of this situation, which I feel needs to be told.

I'm not Anti-Keeper or Pro-Mooncup
I own a menstrual cup, but it is not made by either company

It is the fact that a company is using a name for their product that was already in use by another similar product that I (and a lot of others) have a problem with. A company who have for many years been a fantastic source of freedom and menstrual liberation for so many women. I guess I find it dissapointing in a way, I expected more from a company who we tend to think of as being supportive and liberating for women.

2 Cups, 1 Name-Name Timeline-Is this new cup made by the Keeper?-Questions-What can you do?-Petition
(Or just read on from below)

By the way - I'm happy to listen to the Keeper Inc's side if they wish to tell it - liadan @ bigfoot.com

Updated 3rd May 2007

2 Cups, one name
There are 2 silicone menstrual cups going by the name of "Mooncup".

The original product, "Mooncup", which was brought out in 2000 and is manufactured in the UK by The Mooncup Inc. - www.mooncup.co.uk

And the new product, "Moon Cup" or "Mooncup" (Both versions are being used and I am unsure which is correct), which was brought out in 2006 and is manufactured in the USA by The Keeper Inc. - www.mykeepercup.com and www.thekeeperstore.com

When this was first noticed (On a menstrual cup community someone posted, seeing it on a french site, when no other information about it was heard of), it cased a lot of confusion as it was unclear if this was a new product or the original Mooncup UK being manufactured in the USA. Particularly due to the fact that for several months after it was available to buy over ebay and certain websites, the main "official" Keeper websites did not mention this new silicone cup at all, and when called early on to ask about it, operators did not even know of its presence. Something many of us found strange, and increased the confusion and negative feelings for this situation. However with some investigation it became clear that they are 2 separate products made by 2 separate companies.

On the www.mykeepercup.com website, they clearly say "Not to be confused with like named product produced in another country." And if you look closely at the US "Moon Cup" (this), and the UK "Mooncup" (this) you'll see they are slightly different.

The reason I am not sure of its actual trademarked name (if it has a space or not), is because http://actesante.encatalogue.com (go to "produits", then "femmes" then "les protections feminines") - who are a distributor of the Keeper, and the first place I first became aware of this new cup (here) calls it a "Mooncup" (without a space), as does www.thekeeperstore.com. However the www.mykeepercup.com website calls it a "Moon Cup" (with a space). The actual product has been reported to have "Mooncup" (without a space) stamped into it. I would assume that when using the name you trademarked, a space or not would be important.

The Name Timeline

2000 - The domain name www.mooncup.co.uk was registered to Mooncup UK in Aug 2000 (look up whois here), with it being unclear just when the cups were available for sale, but I would assume sometime not long after.
2002 - January - The Keeper inc. registered the domain www.themooncup.com (lookup whois here)
        - February 25th - The Keeper inc. submitted an application to trademark the name "Moon Cup"
        - October - The Keeper inc. registered the domain www.mooncup.com (lookup whois here)
        - Nov 12 2002 - Mooncup (UK) submitted an application to trademark the name "Mooncup".
2003 - The domain registration was contested - info on that here - but the findings were that there was no proof the domains were being used in bad faith, and that registering a domain name does not by default grant you sole use of the name. The hearing commented that if anyone held a legal right to the name, it would be the Keeper given that they applied for the trademark first.

Note - I do not know whose application was approved first, and if the registration backdates to when it was applied for, or is valid from when it was approved - as this could determine who legally got the name first. The order it was applied for, may not be the order it was approved in. But either way, it would seem that both companies now have the name trademarked to them, which would suggest that Mooncup UK has theirs registered in the UK only, and perhaps the Moon Cup US is USA only.

2006 - On August 1st 2006 the Silicone Keeper/"Moon Cup" was first discovered.

So as the timeline shows, Mooncup UK was without a doubt the first to actually publically use the name, and to sell a product with that name. However, it would appear that The Keeper Inc were first in actually registering the trademark. The fact that Mooncup UK does hold a trademark for it, would suggest it is trademarked (to them) in the UK only.

So both would seem to legally have the right to use that name.

I've been unable to find details on the TM/patent of The Keeper's inc.'s version (which has apparently been in the process of FDA approval for 4 years - explaining one reason why its only just come on the market).

What proof do you have that The Keeper makes the "Made in USA Moon Cup"?
The fact people have actually asked this is amazing. Almost accusingly I was asked what proof I had that this new cup was from the Keeper (as if I'd made up a scandal to ruin the reputation of the Keeper by pretending they made this new cup when they didn't) There are people out there who found it hard to believe that Keeper was actually making this new Moon Cup, and weren't sure that the mykeepercup.com website was run by the keeper.com people. Mostly because until several months after it was first seen on ebay and at http://actesante.encatalogue.com - it was not mentioned anywhere else, including http://www.keeper.com and other "official" sites. Which was very odd for a company to do - to release a product yet not actually mention it on their websites, allowing it to be sold by distributors first.

It is no wonder that consumers weren't sure if it was made by the Keeper Inc or not, when they were not visually claiming they made the cup at first. Its obvious now, the websites are updated to include this new cup now, but this information remains from back when people were still wondering who actually made the cup.

For a start, http://www.mykeepercup.com says at the bottom of the page "The KEEPER and The Moon Cup are manufactured in the USA by The KEEPER Inc. ". Even if the http://www.keeper.com site makes no mention of the silicone cup. I'd imagine if that was not the case, The Keeper Inc would put a stop to that.

This website http://actesante.encatalogue.com, which has both the new USA "Moon Cup" and the rubber "Keeper" for sale, are listed as a distributor of the Keeper on the Keeper's website (here).

Look at the whois on mykeepercup.com (Who sell the USA "Moon Cup"), It lists:
"Administrative Contact:
Crawford, Carole mykeepercup@aol.com
330 Amazon Ave
Cincinnati, Ohio 45220"

Then look at the whois for www.keeper.com (The more "Official" looking website for them), it says:
" Administrative Contact:
Crawford, Lou thekeeperinc@aol.com
THE KEEPER INC.
PO Box 20023
Cincinnati, Ohio 45220"

If you look at the address on the http://www.mykeepercup.com website, the PO box given is "23251". So they are different PO Boxes, but in the same town. I imagine the chances of 2 unrelated people with a surname "Crawford" who both live in Cincinnati, and both happen to run websites that sell Keeper menstrual cups would be pretty slim.

However, just to point out (so other people don't claim I didn't), neither http://www.mykeepercup.com or www.thekeeperstore.com are listed as distributors of the cups on the http://www.keeper.com website (only the french site is). However, if you look at the copyright dates on the http://www.keeper.com website, their last year listed is 2003, which could mean the website has not been updated since then.

Finding their patent or the FDA approval would be helpful... but I can't seem to find either. (Athough I couldn't find the Keeper's patent either - until someone sent the link to me. Which was actually patented in 1993, several years after it was brought out onto the market [So Mooncup UK weren't the only ones to not protect their product when it came out].)

So it would seem to be proof that The Keeper makes the USA "Moon Cup". Apart from all this, if someone else made it, surely they would want credit for it.

Questions
This situation brings up a lot of questions. I think we would all love to know the answers to.

In an industry as small as this, and with The Keeper being the first and only (modern) cup for so long, how did The Keeper Inc. not know of the existance of the UK Mooncup when they applied to register the trademark? Considering they applied in 2002 and Mooncup UK had been around since 2000?

After they learned of the Mooncup UK, why did they choose to continue the proceedings, when it would be obvious that bringing out a product with the same name would be confusing?

Why did they need a new name for this silicone cup that was so different to their "Keeper" name?

Even though this cup was apparently awaiting FDA approval for 4 years, why didn't The Keeper Inc make their intentions known - to ease the consumers into the idea of an similar product (in name and look) to the UK Mooncup?

Why was there no mention of the Silicone cup on http://www.keeper.com for a very long time?

What can you do?

If you've purchased the "wrong" cup
If you have mistakenly purchased a US Moon Cup, when you believed that you were purchasing a UK Mooncup, then you have a few options. The US Moon Cup has a 3 month return policy, so you can return it for a refund. If the seller made the product misleading, then you usually have the right to complain. Ebay should have a system where you can report misleading sellers.

To ensure you purchase the "right" cup

If you wish to purchase the Original UK Mooncup, it is probably best to do so from their official site (www.mooncup.co.uk) so that you can be 100% sure that is what you are getting.
If you wish to purchase one of these cups from a website other than their official websites (at places such as ebay), be sure to read everything you can, to ensure that the product they are selling is the one you want. As the USA Moon Cup is being sold using both the "Moon Cup" and "Mooncup" names, you may need to look at more than just the name.
You can look at the image of the US Moon Cup (this) and the UK Mooncup (this) as a reference to check which cup it is you are buying. Look also at the pouch/bag they come in. Mooncup (UK) uses a natural cotton coloured bag with blue writing and their logo (a sort of U shape with a ball in it).*
Generally if the store also sells the rubber Keeper, then the silicone Moon Cup/Mooncup is probably the USA Moon Cup (but that may not always be true)
If you are not sure which cup a seller is selling, ask them. But be aware that some sellers may not be aware that there are 2 products with the same name. They should be able to tell you details about the cup that will answer your question as to which cup it is.
If they are an English store (Websites will generally end in .co.uk instead of .com), chances are its the UK Mooncup, If it is a US store, chances are it is the US Moon Cup.

*Please note the pouches are generally made from different fabrics and may change between batches of cups, so look at the cup not fabric used on the pouch if you want to be actually certain which one the cup is.

To show your disaproval or to make your feelings known to The Keeper Inc. or UK Mooncup

If you think it will make a difference you can always try writing to the Keeper to tell them your thoughts on this situation. (This is in no way suggesting or condoning harrasing them)
There is an online petition that you can sign to show your disaproval if you wish. See Keeper petition (Petitions are not overly effective, but they can be a way to show you agree/disagree with a statement)
If you would not feel comfortable in the knowledge that by buying/supporting a product made by the Keeper inc. you are supporting a business that would seem to exhibit unethical business practices, then you could simply not purchase products made by The Keeper Inc (which would appear to be The Keeper Menstrual Cup, The Moon Cup menstrual cup and their Cloth Menstrual Pads). (I am not suggesting this is an appropriate or effective method of action, just stating it as one possible way to show your disaproval)
You could write to the UK Mooncup to show your support.
If you are thinking of purchasing a menstrual cup you could choose to purchase it from whichever company you feel more comfortable dealing with (which could also be one of the other cups not involved in this)

My personal point of view on this

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