"Grumpy The Mule" wrote...

There are no federal laws in the USA governing partnerships.
It may be covered by some state law where Mouser is incorporated.
The issue is trademark infringement. Something most companies
take quite seriously.

There have to be some laws that cover partnerships.
Otherwise someone could declare YOU to be their partner, go bankrupt
and disappear... leaving YOU to pay all the bills.
As someone said, partnerships must be agreed on by ALL involved.

My concern would be that seeing these companies listed as "partners"
may lead people to believe that the named companies have some
authority or control over "Telstar". Should a customer be unhappy,
those so called "partners" could get flooded with complaints or
requests to deal with problems.
People may also see those companies as agreeing with "Telstar"
products and policies, which could lead to loss of sales for those
he calls "partners".

There certainly are laws to stop the use of a name. Alan-UK, who
distribute Midland and Albrecht products, have declared war on people
selling those products on eBay.
Aparently, if a customer cannot get satisfaction from an eBay vendor,
they go after those who are considered "associated" with the vendor... in
this case, Alan-UK.
The product may have sneaked in through another route, leaving Alan-UK
dealing with something that they had no part in. They really cannot refund
or replace something they didn't sell, but failure to do so could make them
look like the bad guys.
Alan's rights in the brand names allow them to stop the use of the brand
or trade mark in any way that they have not agreed. They have restricted
the use of the brand names on eBay to around 6 retailers.


Regards,
Peter.