@jaredwhite @peepstein @Gargron I think the point is that it doesn't matter what any of us think if common usage overrides our intent or understanding.

All that matters is that we correctly assess how terms are used and understood, and work from that basis.

My OP was calling out the need to disentangle "Mastodon" from "the Fediverse" if (and only if) the intent of Mastodon GmbH was to assert trademark control against "non-conformant" forks (or, indeed, non-derived fediverse software).