Legal Fixation

New blog location

noreply@blogger.com (Matthew Saunders) — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 22:26:00 +0000

We've shifted the blog over to our shiny new website. Come visit, and don't forget to edit your bookmarks and update your feeds.

18-1 doesn't have that same ring to it

noreply@blogger.com (Matthew Saunders) — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 03:24:00 +0000

Almost-perfect seasons come and go, but embarrassing, soon-to-be abandoned trademark applications are forever.

Not so Irie

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Silverstein) — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 21:35:00 +0000

Put that in your pipe and smoke it

Prepare for the merch-a-lanche

noreply@blogger.com (Matthew Saunders) — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 18:54:00 +0000

As a long suffering Dolphins fan, I'm with Schwimmer. Here's one of the four applications filed by the Kraft Group LLC for "19-0" and "Perfect Season" marks. I do credit them for waiting until January 17th to file. Cocky, but not overly so.

Virtually Blind on SLART

noreply@blogger.com (Matthew Saunders) — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 17:48:00 +0000

Virtually Blind covers the SLART controversy in great detail.

The Magic Hyphen

noreply@blogger.com (Matthew Saunders) — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 21:07:00 +0000

This one got a "wow" from our office.

Don't Infringe Me, Bro!

noreply@blogger.com (Matthew Saunders) — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 20:39:00 +0000

Making the rounds today is the story of Stefan Doyno, his registered trademark CHANGE ROCKS. (yes, the period is apparently part of the mark), and the Obama campaign's use of "change rocks" in promoting a series of fund raising events. From LoHud.com:

Stefan Doyno picked the name "Change Rocks" about three years ago when he started a business to market his patent-pending invention of rings with interchangeable stones. He's since come out with pendants and is planning a line of T-shirts.
Now 19 and a first-year student at SUNY-Buffalo, Doyno learned by Googling his company's name that Obama's camp used the "Change Rocks" trademark for a concert and campaign fundraiser on Dec. 7 in Chicago.
"I was shocked. I flipped out kind of because I was like, 'Oh no, someone else is using it,' " he said.
He called his lawyers, and they send a letter on Dec. 18 to Obama's national campaign manager, David Plouffe, that points out that the name Change Rocks is a registered U.S. trademark (No. 3,266,236) and that if Obama's campaign sells T-shirts or other campaign memorabilia with the slogan, it could constitute an infringement.

Mr. Doyno's registration is for the use of CHANGE ROCKS. in connection with "jewelry." I haven't seen how the Obama campaign is making use of "change rocks," though I expect its use is not a trademark use. And if it is, I'm not sure how Mr. Doyno intends to enforce use of the mark by a third party on "t-shirts or campaign memorabilia," as neither of those are jewelry (unless campaign memorabilia is far nicer than it used to be). I do note that Mr. Doyno's letter to the Obama campaign contained the qualifier "could constitute an infringement," so perhaps this isn't as urgent a matter as it's being made out to be.

Still, great press for Mr. Doyno. I hope he sells some jewelry as a result.

I'll avoid comment on the use of "Googling" in the story quoted above.

Finally, a big thumbs down to Fox News for its report on the story, which states "Stefan Doyno, 19, took out a patent on the phrase 'Change Rocks' three years ago to market his line of boutique jewelry and stones."

Big Brothers, Big Sisters, Big Confusion?

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Silverstein) — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 18:51:00 +0000

The Big Sister Association of Greater Boston has filed suit against Big Brothers Big Sisters of Massachusetts Bay for trademark infringement. Last year, Big Brothers' decided to add "Big Sisters" to its name which Big Sister claims has created confusion.

The federal lawsuit, filed Friday in US District Court in Boston, comes after more than a year of discussions between the two nonprofits over the name change.

Dumpster Diving for Electronic Discovery

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Silverstein) — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 13:33:00 +0000

When faced with federal litigation it's generally not a wise move to destroy your computer.

Top Ten Reasons A Screenwriter Needs A Lawyer

noreply@blogger.com (Matthew Saunders) — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 14:59:00 +0000

From Robert L. Seigel at Cowan, DeBaets, Abrahams & Sheppard comes this helpful list of ten scenarios in which a screenwriter most finds him or herself in need of an attorney. "When you want to collaborate on a script with your soon-to-be-former friend" should be of particular note to aspiring writers out there.

Patent (Pending) Attorneys

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Silverstein) — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 21:19:00 +0000

Erik Heels explains why he is now a "patent pending attorney." As always, Erik provides excellent, well-written analysis that even a lowly trademark attorney like myself can understand.

Xtreme Trademark Application!

noreply@blogger.com (Matthew Saunders) — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 20:50:00 +0000

Trademork reports on the latest Mountain Dew applications filed by PepsiCo.

Fake Louis Doesn't Rate

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Silverstein) — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 21:41:00 +0000

Sure we have fake handbags, watches, and DVDs. But nothing compares to fake currency.

MySpace Liable in France for Copyright Infringement as Publisher

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Silverstein) — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 22:20:00 +0000

In France, MySpace has been found liable for infringement of comic Jean-Yves Lambert's publicity rights and copyrights.

MySpace was held liable because the court ruled that it was not only a hosting provider but also a publisher of the infringing content. The court observed that, according to its terms of service, MySpace defined itself as “a social networking service that allows its members to create unique personal profiles online in order to find and communicate with old and new friends.”

The court also observed that MySpace “allowed its members to create personal web pages structured by frames displayed in a way specific to the website.” All MySpace pages, the court noted “display on the top an advertisement banner and then a number of frames within the page, each displaying specific information about the member such as its picture, identity and contact details, URL address, interests, personal details, friends and comments from friends etc…”

The court concluded that “by imposing such a specific, frame-based, structure for members to present their personal information and by displaying [revenue generating] ads for each and every visit [made on the pages], [MySpace acted] as a publisher.”

Unlike in the US, French courts have been fairly consistent in finding social networking sites and search engines liable for infringement.

McAfee: The State of Typo-Squatting 2007

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Silverstein) — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 20:40:00 +0000

McAfee study on the current state of typo-squatting. The upshot is that the problem is getting worse. The report has a nice graphic showing the "Squatter Money Cycle." (via C|Net)

Martha Stewart and the Katonah Village Improvement Society Settle Trademark Dispute

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Silverstein) — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 18:07:00 +0000

It appears that Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia and the Katonah Village Improvement Society have settled their differences regarding the KATONAH mark. MSO will be able to use the mark on some goods, but not on others. Of MSO's three federal trademark applications for the KATONAH mark, only one has not been abandoned. Details of the various Opposition proceedings can be found here. In the "Mark" field, simply enter the word KATONAH. (via NameWire)

Art and Egg Nog

noreply@blogger.com (Matthew Saunders) — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 14:58:00 +0000

Somerville, Mass.-based artist Jenn Ski will have her space age bachelor pad style works featured in an upcoming television ad campaign for Hood's new flavored egg nogs. If she's really lucky, she'll get a case of the stuff gratis. Hood nog is Legal Fixation's nog of choice (mine, anyway).

What else can you say

noreply@blogger.com (Matthew Saunders) — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 21:48:00 +0000

but amen.

Haute Diggity Dog Affirmed

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Silverstein) — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 00:05:00 +0000

Rebecca Tushnet is reporting that the Fourth Circuit has affirmed the Haute Diggity Dog trademark dilution decision.

The Art of the 360 Deal

noreply@blogger.com (Matthew Saunders) — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 14:51:00 +0000

Jeff Leeds in The New York Times has a nice look at what's known as the 360 deal, whereby a record label profits not just from its artists' record sales, but merchandising, endorsements, touring, and anything else they can get their hands on. In return, the theory goes, the artist is given more time to develop, rather than immediately pressured to sell millions of albums.

From the article, an idea of what makes up a typical 360:

Atlantic’s document offers a conventional cash advance to sign the artist, who would receive a royalty for sales after expenses were recouped. With the release of the artist’s first album, however, the label has an option to pay an additional $200,000 in exchange for 30 percent of the net income from all touring, merchandise, endorsements and fan-club fees.
Atlantic would also have the right to approve the act’s tour schedule, and the salaries of certain tour and merchandise sales employees hired by the artist. But the label also offers the artist a 30 percent cut of the label’s album profits — if any — which represents an improvement from the typical industry royalty of 15 percent.

Not so bad on the surface, with the understanding that thirty percent of album profits is just as likely to equal zero as the original fifteen percent. And it's hard to trust a label to commit a year and a half or more to developing an artist when turnover is as high as it is. Still, as Coolfer notes, it's early yet, so we'll need to check back in a year or so to see how bands like Paramore are doing under the deal.

By far the scariest quote comes from Craig Kallman of Atlantic Records: “We used to look at jam bands as bands that absolutely we shouldn’t sign,” Mr. Kallman said. “Now all of a sudden I’m saying: ‘Guys, you absolutely must find the next hottest jam band. I need the next Phish. Urgently.’”

Do. Not. Want.

Archive of Corporate Identities

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Silverstein) — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 23:40:00 +0000

For trademark lovers only. (via MeFi)

Stanford Copyright & Fair Use Website

noreply@blogger.com (Matthew Saunders) — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 22:31:00 +0000

The Stanford Copyright & Fair Use website has been updated, and is chock-full of resources, news, and much more good stuff. Definitely worthy of a bookmark, whether you're a practitioner or a content creator.

Obligatory Red Sox Celebration Post

noreply@blogger.com (Matthew Saunders) — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 19:57:00 +0000

Speaking of pumpkin carvings...

(photo and carving: rocketlass)

Copyright Infringement is Spooooky Stuff

noreply@blogger.com (Matthew Saunders) — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 16:05:00 +0000

Illustrator Dani Jones tells a scary tale of encountering a very familiar-looking pumpkin carving, and offers a brief lesson in copyright.

Domain Name Front Running

noreply@blogger.com (Aaron Silverstein) — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 22:11:00 +0000

As if the domain name system wasn't screwed up enough as it is. Now we may have to deal with Domain Name Front Running. Although ICANN has not seen this practice in the wild, it has issued an advisory on the practice. According to DomainTools Blog, Front Running is a practice of stealing someones domain name search queries and registering the domain name before the original person can register it. Let’s say you find a domain that is available for registration. Well if someone steals your idea and registers it before you it is like holding you hostage this is Domain Spying or Front Running.