Intellectual Property Law

Strike Two!

Posted on November 06, 2007
In a phone call with a client last night, I was asked what I thought about the strike started by the Writers Guild of America that is now affecting the television industry. According to the WGA website, there are big issues to be resolved, including:Jurisdiction for most of new media writing...

We're back!

Posted on July 11, 2007
After months of technical issues, we're back. The problem I learned was that when Google (which sends out the e-mails) and Blogger (which hosts this log on the web) merged, the accounts merged as well and it took forever to make them separated. But all is back to normal! I hope to send out a biweekly update, as done in the past...

Now! A part of the Technorati!

Posted on February 23, 2007
Technorati ProfileThe Trademark, Copyright, and Entertainment Law Forum is written by Anthony Verna. Please note that it is for the discussion of recent developments in these areas of law. The forum is not a space for legal advice. Please seek the help and counsel of an attorney for your legal needs...

Lieutenant Dan Got Me Invested in Some Kind of Fruit Company.

Posted on February 22, 2007
Cisco and Apple finally settled their dispute over the use of the trademark "iPhone."It comes as no surprise since Cisco's complaint was filed back in January. The complaint alleged trademark infringement, unfair competition, false description and injury to business reputation (the charge of injury to business reputation is a California state claim; all the others are federal claims under the Lanham Act - the act that makes trademarks the domain of federal law)...

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Bucks for Becks. And insults.

Posted on January 18, 2007
The big international sporting news is that the most famous person on the planet, David Beckham, is coming to America to play with the Los Angeles Galaxy of Major League Soccer.The big drama is when Beckham might start playing with Los Angeles. It certainly does not help that the president of his current team, Réal Madrid, talked about Beckham's inability to be loyal to his current team now that a contract was signed that starts after his current contract runs out and that he's washed up...

Happy New Year

Posted on January 14, 2007
Happy New Year, readers!The forum has taken some time off in order to do work and take care of personal business.The big news story in the technological world comes from Apple. There's no shock there, as Apple has been making waves in personal devices, like the iPod...

Google Loses a Trademark Case in France

Posted on November 28, 2006
Back in 2004, Louis Vuitton sued Google in France for improperly using its trademarks in advertising.Recently, Google has lost its appeal in the case. The lawsuit claimed that Google's use of "Louis Vuitton" in its AdWords program (in which companies bid on keyword advertising on various websites) resulted in "trademark counterfeiting, unfair competition and misleading advertising...

Quick Hits

Posted on November 24, 2006
I hope that everyone had a happy Thanksgiving.Here are some short items right now.Other Law BlogsYou can read the New York Small Business Law blog of Imke Ratschko at http://www.newyorksmallbusinesslaw.com/.MySpaceUniversal Music Group has sued MySpace for copyright infringement...

Ack! It's not Coca-Cola! (Is that so bad?)

Posted on November 02, 2006
My coworker, Carolyn, picked up a red can with white lettering, which she assumed was Coke. As she's drinking it, she looks at the can and wonders what Berkley & Jensen is (at this point she still hasn't realized it's not Coca Cola). Even though the can was a lighter shade of red, and the white lettering says 'Cola Clasic' (classic is slightly smaller than Cola...

When is a trademark "descriptive"?

Posted on October 12, 2006
I'm steamed a little bit.I have a client who has "24 7" as a part of several different trademarks. Two of them were recently rejected and (partially) one was because "24 7" is descriptive of "continuous."It's hard to disagree with a part of the statement, but a consumer has to make what is called a multi-step logical thought process in order to go from seeing "24 7" to knowing it means "24 hours a day, 7 days a week...

Is There Branding in Sports Uniforms?

Posted on October 03, 2006
After a brief vacation from writing, the Law Form is back up and running. Don't forget to view the archive at www.TMCEntLawForum.com.I spoke with Paul Lukas, an expert on sports uniforms. You can read his Uni Watch column on ESPN.com's Page 2 and read his Uni Watch Blog (which is a semi-daily update of his uniform knowledge)...

Is There Branding in Television Networks?

Posted on September 06, 2006
The UPN and WB television networks are merging for this upcoming television season. The new network is called CW and features the most-viewed shows from the two old networks.Does the CW stand for a certain type of programming?I spoke with Ellen Gray, the television critic of the Philadelphia Daily News, recently about the changes that the new CW network will (or will not) bring to television in this upcoming season...

Stop Pooring my Coffee!

Posted on September 01, 2006
Standard & Poor's, known to many as a financial institution of some sort, has sued a Texas-based company called Standard & Pours Coffee & Stocks, which is a cafe, for trademark dilution.As stated in an earlier post, "[d]ilution comes in when the defendant's use of a mark either blurs the connection in consumers' minds between the plaintiff's mark and the goods and services is weakened or the defendant's use tarnishes the plaintiff's mark...

You can't google it. You also can't xerox a xerox. Still.

Posted on August 22, 2006
Do you remember the ad campaign that said "You can't Xerox a Xerox on a Xerox?" You can briefly hear me talk about this (warning: link to MP3 file) on The Rollye James Show a few months ago.Google is now beginning to take steps to protect its trademark...

I feel prescient. Apple defends "Pod."

Posted on August 18, 2006
Back on July 20th, I wrote, "Think about a mark like "eBay" or "iPod." If someone started to make eBay brand home appliances, there would be a likelihood of confusion because "eBay" can only mean the website that sells goods by third parties in an auction format...

Higher Ticket Prices!

Posted on August 14, 2006
There are several different articles about several fans suing the Chicago Cubs for scalping their own tickets to games.How would this happen?According to all reports, the Cubs set up their own company, Wrigley Field Premium Tickets, owned by the same company that owns the Cubs (the Tribune Company), run by a Vice President of the Chicago Cubs, and had the Cubs do the accounting...

Fantasy Baseball players can relax.

Posted on August 09, 2006
A judge has ruled that players' names and statistics (as a result of games) are not the intellectual property of Major League Baseball.In what seems to be a logical ruling, the judge said that the names and statistics are not "copyrightable" and that if there were a right of publicity to be infringed, those rights are lost because newspapers publish the exact same information every day...

Will LimeWire go Legit or Belly-Up?

Posted on August 08, 2006
Record labels have sued the file-sharing service LimeWire with a copyright infringement suit.That it happened is no surprise.The history of file-sharing lawsuits is an odd mix, however.Here is a little history.The first case on the subject is A&M Records, Inc...

Mailbag!

Posted on July 20, 2006
The last post about Apple's new trademark "NUMBERS," put a thought in the mind of Bryan Adams of Teaneck, NJ."Is that why the TV show is called 'Numb3rs'?"Well, that's hard to say. If I were to guess, I would say that is more of a stylistic choice than a choice because of trademark law...

Apple has a new trademark.

Posted on July 18, 2006
According to a story on MacsimumNews.com, Apple has registered "NUMBERS" as a trademark."Numbers," so say the rumors, is going to be the name of Apple's new spreadsheet software for a new suite of office software for the Mac. The article deals with Apple's European trademark filings, so a look at the U...

Mene Gene Redux - Though it is not Over

Posted on July 12, 2006
First off, I want to thank Lou Raguse, the journalist who covered the Mean Gene story for KELO-TV in and its website, www.keloland.com, for helping me sort out some of the facts. You can also read the complaint and the judge's written decision for the case...

"Weird Al" Yankovic vs. Those Who Do Not Understand

Posted on July 04, 2006
According to a recent NPR story, James Blunt's record label, Atlantic Records has told "Weird Al" Yankovic that he cannot release a parody of Blunt's hit song, "You're Beautiful" called "You're Pitiful."Can a record label do this (since it owns the copyright to the music and lyrics)?Read what Yankovic himself said in the story...

Mailbag

Posted on June 27, 2006
It's always wonderful to receive letters. If you have any comments or questions, do not hesitate to write to averna@anthonyverna.com.If the persona Mean Gene was created by Titan Sports or by Gene Okerlund while employed or to get employed by Titan Sports, I would think Titan Sports owns the mark, registered or not...

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