A recent road trip in Texas flagged this roadside sign, depicting a likely famous non-verbal logo, standing all alone: So, I dug up this little gem from our archives to refresh my memory on what I had said about it before: Which Non-Verbal Logo Doesn’t Belong? Admittedly, I was skeptical about Starbucks’ move to extract the siren… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: Non-Verbal Logos
University of California Flushes New Logo
Posted in AlphaWatch, Branding, Guest Bloggers, Marketing, Social Networking, TrademarksSo, last Friday we covered this story: Critics Flush New University of California Logo. Now, we can report that the next morning, the Los Angeles Times wrote this story: Maligned UC Logo Shelved; “Time to Move On,” Officials Say. Putting aside any possible questions about cause and effect, is there a difference between flushing a… Continue Reading
Critics Flush New University of California Logo
Posted in AlphaWatch, Branding, Guest Bloggers, Marketing, Trademarks, TruncationHow about a little levity for your weekend preparations? There has been a great deal of discussion among those interested in the brand new and increasingly controversial University of California logo appearing on the right above. Mashable’s discussion of the online branding outrage is here. Berkeleyside coverage is here. And, News Fix coverage is here. Brian Williams even… Continue Reading
KFC’s FLG, A Finger Lickin’ Good Trademark Truncation?
Posted in Branding, Famous Marks, Food, International, Marketing, Trademarks, Truncation, USPTOIt is not a secret (recipe or otherwise) that Kentucky Fried Chicken became KFC to more easily (through truncation in branding) communicate an expanded menu and a healthier approach to fast food. We’ve even wondered whether KFC eventually may bow to an image of the Colonel with no words, as a non-verbal logo, as so many others have… Continue Reading
Will the Twitter Bird Fly Alone Some Day?
Posted in Branding, Famous Marks, Marketing, Non-Traditional Trademarks, Sight, Social Networking, TrademarksLast month William Lozito, over at Name Wire: The Product Naming Blog, reported on Twitter’s new bird logo, and the multitude of don’ts associated with the launch of it. Having so many don’ts seems a bit contrary to Twitter’s prior rather lax or laissez-faire approach to trademark enforcement,… Continue Reading
Will Consumers See Through Invisible Branding?
Posted in Advertising, Branding, Marketing, TrademarksLast week, Jack Ellis of World Trademark Review, did a very interesting piece on something called “invisible branding”: “Trademark-free marketing: should other companies follow Ford?” In it, Ellis explores Ford Motor Company’s recent decision to utilize no trademark or brand references in Ford’s “Go Further” advertising campaign. It is interesting timing for Ford to go stealth without its… Continue Reading
Red Bull Packaging Trade Dress Approved by USPTO
Posted in ArticlesTo assist in curbing the knock-off problem depicted above, Austrian-based Red Bull is on the move with its recent attempt to register — as a non-traditional trademark in the U.S. — the following design in connection with energy drinks, soft drinks, and sports drinks: Here is the description of the mark approved by the USPTO… Continue Reading
The Colonel or The Bell?
Posted in BrandingWhich brand do you believe is better equipped to enjoy the benefits of using a non-verbal logo? In other words, which brand can more easily shed the words from the visual identity, in the hopes of joining the ranks of these likely famous non-verbal logos and brand signals? My answer below the jump.
Webinar on Non-Traditional Trademarks, Sound, Color, Shape, Scent & More
Posted in Non-Traditional Trademarks, Product Configurations, Sight, Smell, Sound, Taste, Touch, TrademarksI’m happy to share with you that on Tuesday February 8, 2011, I’m speaking about one of my favorite topics, non-traditional trademarks, with my friends Linda McLeod of Finnegan Henderson and Stephen Feingold of Kilpatrick Townsend, in a webinar program put on by Strafford Publications, Inc. The webinar begins at 1:00 PM EST and Noon CST. Registration details… Continue Reading
A Formulaic Non-Verbal Logo?
Posted in Branding, Marketing, TrademarksNot your garden variety trademark for anything, let alone, ammunition: Anyone able to decipher it, beyond the consumer obviously being happy in the end? It was recently published for opposition at the USPTO.
A Famous Trademark That Casts a Very Long Shadow
Posted in Branding, Famous Marks, Law Suits, Marketing, TrademarksThis is the epitome of a famous non-verbal logo and trademark that truly can stand alone (we have discussed others too): Hat tip to John Welch over at the TTABlog who did a very nice write up on this interesting decision: Apple, Inc. v. Echospin, LLC. Basically, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office… Continue Reading
Emoticons as Trademarks
Posted in Branding, Marketing, Non-Traditional Trademarks, TrademarksLast week, I blogged about a federally-registered emoticon trademark, one that I discovered at 30,000 feet, here. Emoticons as trademarks? Does the idea make you want to roll your eyes like Saturday Night Live’s Kristen Wiig as Aunt Linda? Brace yourself, they appear inclined to stay, for at least a while! Two weeks ago I couldn’t have told you what an emoticon… Continue Reading
Judging A Brand By Its Cover
Posted in Branding, Marketing, TrademarksI’m mostly wearing my consumer hat today, having just returned from a youth baseball tournament in Phoenix this past weekend, where we stayed at the six month new Drury Inn & Suites shown above. As you may recall, and if so, you will have noticed the irony because, last September I riffed about the Drury name and asked whether a… Continue Reading
What the *-)- Blogging From 30,000 Feet
Posted in Branding, Marketing, TrademarksSome things you should do, just because you can. For example, when I was sixteen, I jumped out of a plane at 3,000 feet, with a parachute tethered to the plane, of course, landing near a chicken farm, surrounded by barbed wire, somewhere in rural North Carolina. That was an experience I’ll never forget, but I haven’t repeated it, at least… Continue Reading
Lightning Strikes How Many Times?
Posted in Branding, Sight, TrademarksI have heard that lightning only strikes once in the same place, but apparently that is only a myth. Indeed, the number of lightning bolt logos that have "hit" the mail room, over the years, at the U.S. Trademark Office appear to provide additional evidence for disproving the popular myth. So, what does that say, if anything, about the… Continue Reading
The Freezman Cometh?
Posted in Advertising, Branding, Marketing, Non-Traditional Trademarks, TrademarksWorries about having a white Christmas in Minneapolis and elsewhere have been quiet this year. Thus far, we have spent far more than our typical time shoveling some especially heavy wet snow this holiday season, but don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining. I do have snow on my mind, however, because each time I think… Continue Reading
Branding Exclamations!
Posted in Advertising, Branding, Food, International, Marketing, Non-Traditional Trademarks, TrademarksCan you name the owner of this exclamation mark branding signal? You may be surprised to learn it is federally-registered in the U.S. as a stand-alone non-verbal trademark. You may be even more surprised to learn, it was federally-registered without a showing of secondary meaning or acquired distinctiveness, because it was viewed as an inherently distinctive… Continue Reading
An Increasingly Intense Ellipsis? dot, doT, dOT, DOT!
Posted in Advertising, Branding, Look-For Ads, Marketing, Non-Traditional Trademarks, Sight, TrademarksAs you may recall, last month, we had some fun trying to solve the mystery of a non-traditional and non-verbal trademark owned by Amazon.com, here. This time the non-traditional and non-verbal mystery mark shown above is described in trademark filings as consisting of "four circles that increase in size from left to right." I call it… Continue Reading
Pros and Cons of Stand-Alone Non-Verbal Logos and Other Trademark Styles: A Legal Perspective
Posted in Advertising, Branding, Infringement, Marketing, TrademarksAs promised earlier this week, in my post entitled "Without Words, But Not Speechless: More On Non-Verbal Logos That Can Stand Alone," here is my effort to identify, from a legal perspective, some of the pros and cons of non-verbal logos and other trademark styles. But, before addressing the legal implications, it is worth noting that a number of our insightful readers and commenters already… Continue Reading
Without Words, But Not Speechless: More On Non-Verbal Logos That Can Stand Alone
Posted in Advertising, Branding, Famous Marks, Food, Marketing, TrademarksMy family vacation and road trip through the heartland this past week has yielded a few photos for discussion. For example, here is a captured pair of non-verbal logos that can stand alone, without the need for any words. As you may recall, one of my previous blog posts (April 9, 2009) discussed non-verbal logos that can… Continue Reading
Chief Wahoo ≠ Louis Sockalexis
Posted in Advertising, Branding, Marketing, TrademarksLast week I blogged about how the Cleveland Indians could save some face by re-branding Chief Wahoo: Turns out there are some who believe that Chief Wahoo is a "tribute" to or the logo actually pays "homage" to Louis Sockalexis, who Baseball Almanac has reported to be professional baseball’s first American Indian player. He apparently played for… Continue Reading
“Chief Wahoo” Re-Branding Underway? A Painful Lesson on Saving Face
Posted in Advertising, Branding, First Amendment, Marketing, TrademarksA picture can say a thousand words; so does a face. The same is probably true of non-verbal logos, including the several federally-registered "Chief Wahoo" logos, shown above (all apparently still in use by the "Cleveland Indians" professional baseball team, according to their latest trademark filings). So, what do they say to you? My take? I can… Continue Reading
Non-Verbal Logos That Can Stand Alone, And One That Can’t
Posted in Branding, Famous Marks, Marketing, Sight, TrademarksEven young children understand the power of brands and trademark symbols before they can read. Years ago, when my children were at the ripe young age of wondering (and maybe caring) what my job was, I’d try to explain the kinds of things a trademark attorney might do. Of course, I didn’t tell them some view trademark types as "the… Continue Reading
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...
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...
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...
Derek Allen
In hindsight, writing about creativity and the law may have always been in the cards for me. I began training for a career in litigation at an early age by finding ways to disagree with pretty much anyone about pretty much anything. In my longest-running “case,” I argued with my middle school math teacher, Mrs. Jabs, for the better part of four years over whether, even if I got the right answer, I had to show my work to get full credit. More...
Martha Engel
Although my interest in gadgetry and my aptitude for math eventually led me to become an engineer, my ad executive father and artistically gifted mother fostered an appreciation for the creative from a young age. More...
Anjali Shankar
When I was in elementary and middle school, I loved writing short stories. Creativity and imagination seem to come naturally to people when they are young. More...
Timothy Sitzmann
I have always considered myself to be a creative person. Full disclosure: I'm not claiming that I've created anything good, merely that I have created things that exist.More...