In the wake of all the discussion and debate over "trademark bullying," NFIB (National Federation of Independent Businesses), the self-proclaimed Voice of Small Business, recently offered its members and followers "5 Steps to Avoid Corporate Trademark Bullying": Do Your Homework; Choose a Descriptive Business Name; Use Common Sense; Consider Buying Intellectual Property Insurance; and When in Doubt,… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: Descriptive Trademarks
Seth Godin on Subtlety: The Trademark Perspective
Posted in Branding, Goodwill, Look-For Ads, Marketing, Non-Traditional Trademarks, TrademarksSeth Godin’s recent post entitled Subtlety, deconstructed, struck a chord with me, and should strike a chord with all trademark types and the brand owners they represent. Here is my favorite excerpt: Subtle design and messaging challenge the user to make her own connections instead of spelling out every detail. Connections we make are more powerful than… Continue Reading
Pitfalls in Naming the New
Posted in BrandingI am currently in my home state of California, a place known to some as “the land of fruits and nuts.” (Although, “the Left Coast” is my favorite of these playfully derisive names for California.) California is indeed the fruit basket of the United States, producing 51% of the nation’s fruit. And amongst the growing and… Continue Reading
When is a Shuffle Not an iPod Shuffle?
Posted in Advertising, Branding, Contracts, Counterfeits, Infringement, Marketing, TrademarksHere is a brand baiting gem spotted yesterday at a website called Daily Checkout: Unremarkable? A deal, you say? Well, the following disclaimer appears twice in the sidebar adjacent to this deal: And here is another feature pulled from the sidebar: Greeaat . . . an MP3 player that won’t work with iTunes. Seriously? In… Continue Reading
Environmentally Friendly Brands: Blue A Cleaner Choice Than Green
Posted in Branding, Trademarks, TTABAre you able to identify BlueCar from these two images? How about green, do you see a green car here? And, no, we’re not testing for envy or color blindness. Easy, right? Not so fast . . . .
Which “Would You Rather” Would You Rather Play?
Posted in Branding, Dilution, Law Suits, TrademarksA couple of weeks ago, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reversed a district court that had held that the federally registered trademark "WOULD YOU RATHER . . . ?" was merely descriptive as applied to books and games. (PDF of appellate opinion here.) Briefly, the facts are that Falls Media owns the aforementioned trademark registration,… Continue Reading
Grilling Some Barbecue Brands
Posted in Branding, Loss of Rights, TrademarksAs evidenced on these very pages over the past year or so, there does seem to be a general divide between legal types and marketing types about the desirability of descriptive trademarks and brands. This is understandable. There is a direct tension here. More descriptive marks and brands carry more information to a consumer and… Continue Reading
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Duets Blog Authors
Steve Baird
Just so you know, I'm all about brands and the law, both professionally and personally. I regularly annoy family and friends in retail stores by focusing on product labels—not to buy the product, but to read the fine print and ask, "Who owns these brands" and "Did they really register those marks?" More...
Dan Kelly
You can call me a “non-traditional” attorney, which is a polite way of saying that I did not attend law school straight out of college. I spent five of my first six years after college as a junior high school teacher. The other year I worked as an engineer for a large corporation. More...
Sharon Armstrong
Voted most likely to become an actress while in pre-school, I don’t think I surprised anyone by becoming a lawyer, the steadiest professional gig open to those with a flair for the dramatic. More...
Brent Lorentz
Although I wish I could say my path to the law was the result of a lifelong dream or calling, it was more the result mere curiosity and an affinity for leather-bound books. More...
Catlan McCurdy
Having long been told by my parents that I could do or be anything I wanted, I chose at the age of 10 to become an attorney, as it was the career that would most likely lead me to my goal of becoming the first woman POTUS.More...
Tiffany Blofield
Although my initial career path was to be one of the Supremes (not the musically talented ones with platform shoes and sequins, but rather, the nine wearing sensible shoes and pressed black robes in DC), I will likely stay in Minnesota as I have never lived anywhere else. More...
Brad Walz
My law career started on the ice…as a defensive hockey player (we’re not talking professionally…and if I were, I probably wouldn’t have gotten into law). More...
Susan Perera
Born into the world with an aptitude for science and an affinity for art I found my career path quickly chosen for me. More...
Joy S. Newborg
When I took a personality/career test in high school to determine which path in life I should follow, I was told I should either be in broadcast journalism or law. So after I went to undergraduate school for broadcast journalism and film/television, I went on to obtain my law degree from the University of Minnesota. More...
Laura Gutierrez
An attorney I am not. Though told to become one, I don't possess those qualities needed to be an effective one (I lack confrontation skills, and although I can write a great argumentative essay, I can’t argue outside a sheet of paper). More...