Coincidentally (or perhaps by design), Tiffany and Company (“Tiffany”) filed suit on Valentine’s Day against Costco Wholesale Corporation (“Costco”) to protect its trademark with respect to engagement rings. We know from our prior post regarding Tiffany’s amicus brief filed in support of Christian Louboutin that Tiffany actively protects its brand.
If you are like me,
Passing by a roadside billboard recently (below is a miniature version I found in the Minneapolis skyway system), my first thought was, wow, McDonald’s is getting into the juicy lucy business:
Until more focus revealed that State Farm Insurance is the one behind the ad. Look familiar?
No doubt burgers and car insurance are
While watching Lena Dunham stumble in her 6-inch Louboutin red-soled heels during the 70th Annual Golden Globe Awards broadcast, our comments revolved around the fact that her dress was so long, she should have worn slippers instead of stilettos. We believed that Ms. Dunham should have waited to wear the Louboutin shoes until
Earlier this month, we asked whether [yo]gurt(lab) has an inherently distinctive interior restaurant environment?
This week, we’re focused on product packaging, and ask whether Spine Vodka has enough meat on the bones to satisfy the trademark test for an inherently distinctive product package design?
This little gem of an image surfaced in
We recently focused our attention on a very unique-looking, dare I say distinctive, retail store exterior design; for a quick reminder, see here.
The recent craze for self-serve frozen yogurt shops — where you pay by the ounce (or perhaps, by the pound), has us focused today on a pretty darn unique interior retail
Would you place this mouth wash bottle on your bathroom counter or hide it under the counter?
The answer to this question, it appears, can have a material impact on whether the shape and design of the bottle functions as a non-traditional trademark.
The Procter & Gamble Company created this elegant container design —
There is a new bank in town, or at least new billboard advertising for a bank I haven’t noticed before now — by the way, I like the color scheme. The logo reminded me of another, at least from a distance, albeit for different services.
Putting that issue aside, there are a couple
—John Reinan, Senior Director at Fast Horse, a Minneapolis marketing agency
Tim Tebow was a great college quarterback. But now that he’s in the NFL, he’s joined the ranks of celebrities who are famous mainly for being famous. Example A: “Tebowing,” his signature move. After making a play, the devout Christian often drops
Caution must be exercised in advertising and marketing materials when the brand owner desires ownership of non-traditional trademarks such as product configurations (here and here), trade dress, and single color marks too.
In our ongoing effort to raise the awareness of marketing types to pitfalls that can kill non-traditional trademark rights, a
As promised, here are some further thoughts, lessons learned, and remaining unanswered questions concerning the recent and long-anticipated decision of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in Christian Louboutin S.A. v. Yves Saint Laurent Am. Holding, Inc.
Lessons Learned for Marketing Types: