Santa brought me one of my favorite trademarked and patented products: a LEGO® set! Yes that is Mr. Firefighter dousing the flames on the LEGO® tree while holding a cup of coffee. The hero of my LEGOland! For a Lego geek like me, there was an intriguing story in the Wall Street Journal last week… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: Wall Street Journal
Why Publicity Matters, Part II (Best Publicity Strategy)
Posted in Guest Bloggers, Television—Neil F. Anderson, Founder/President, The Courage Group, Inc. Having already discussed Why Publicity Matters last week, the most effective publicity strategy is to position yourself as an expert in your field. Notice how the media, especially television, seems to have the same experts come on shows to comment on stories etc. This did not happen by accident… Continue Reading
Gap, Tropicana, The Wall Street Journal, and the 1968 Tet Offensive
Posted in Branding, Guest Bloggers, Marketing, Product Packagingby James Mahoney, Creative director/writer at Razor’s Edge Communications What does a 42-year-old military offensive have to do with branding and social media? Quite a bit, as it happens. Consider four seemingly unrelated situations: First, clothing purveyor Gap experienced an alleged misadventure recently when it unveiled a "new logo" on its website, only to reinstate… Continue Reading
New “Tinman” Triathlon to be Sponsored by Ironman?
Posted in Branding, Goodwill, Marketing, Trademarks–Dan Kelly, Attorney I enjoyed Brent’s “I’m with the Brand” post last week, in which he detailed being turned off by overzealous fandom of some popular, or perhaps trendy, brands. I can identify (although I have no qualms about being, or admitting that I am, an “Apple Core”). This week, I read about a situation that illustrates the… Continue Reading
First iPhone, Now iPad: Guessing at Apple’s Trademark Clearance Strategy
Posted in Branding, Counterfeits, Dilution, Infringement, Marketing, Trademarks–Dan Kelly, Attorney Can you spot the genuine iPad? Back in July, I blogged about my then-discovery that Apple did not own the federal trademark registration for iPhone. Needless to say, when I heard about Apple’s new iPad product, I just had to see if they were out in front in securing trademark rights to… 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...
Cathleen Dahl
Trademarks and I met through a small job advertisement in the back of a local newspaper, and little did I know that I would spend the next 18 years (and counting) deriving a living from their existence and importance. More...