There's An App For That - But Only From Apple...?
I guess we should have seen this coming – or not. As reported by CNN on Tuesday, Apple has obtained a federal trademark registration for its slogan, THERE’S AN APP FOR THAT. Well, ok…CNN got it wrong; the PTO has only just accepted Apple’s Statement of Use, which means that a registration is imminent, but we’ll let CNN slide on this one.
Update: Social Network Privacy Settings Still Mean Nothing in New York
This post is an update to our August 27th post where we reported that a District Court in California held that privacy settings on Facebook and MySpace do actually matter.
Interbrand's Top 100 Global Brands for 2010 Released
Interbrand has just released its annual listing of the Top 100 Global Brands.
Bad Brand Decision from Audi "Rears" Its Ugly Head?
Another day, another case of a company not bothering to see how its new trademark translates into the native languages of its intended consumers.
Court Rules on Social Media Sites' Privacy Settings
On May 26th, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California ruled that, under the Stored Communications Act of 1986, postings to a user’s Facebook “wall” (and, similarly, to the “comments” page on MySpace – although nobody actually uses MySpace anymore) are considered private so long as the user has his privacy settings set such that only “friends” can see his wall postings.
Supreme Court's Ruling in American Needle Creates Uncertainty Over Future of NFL Licensing
In a landmark decision, released (coincidentally?) on the first day of the International Trademark Association’s Annual Meeting, the U.S. Supreme Court held, in American Needle, Inc. v. National Football League, that the NFL’s licensing activities are covered by Section 1 of the Sherman Antitrust Act which prohibits “every contract, combination in the form of a trust or otherwise, or, conspiracy, in restraint of trade.” As a result, the NFL will now be required to demonstrate, on remand, that such activities comport with the so-called “Rule of Reason.”
Facebook: Now Presenting, "Brand Destruction!"
Since we created an Evolving Media & Technology Team here at KMK, I have been telling brand owners to proactively manage their presence on Facebook by creating an official, corporate, Facebook page and strategically selecting the fan pages and copycat pages to shut down. After yet another “update” to its site late last week, Facebook has now made this kind of brand management exponentially more difficult for trademark owners.
Time to Update Your Facebook Settings... Again
I’ll give Facebook credit for one thing — they keep making you come back to their site, if for no other reason than to perform a little “preventative maintenance” on your profile from time to time.
Yesterday, Facebook took the first step toward their goal of Facebook-ing the entire planet by announcing that its familiar “like” button will start showing up all over the internet on non-Facebook sites. I guess because it’s so much fun to tell people that you “like” their Facebook status, Facebook now wants you to have that opportunity wherever you’re surfing online.
Brand Dilution At Its Finest: BMW's New "M" Bicycle
Today, BMW announced that, beginning in June, customers can order its new “M” bicycle. The bike, which you can see courtesy of Autoblog, is nice enough on the eyes. But one wonders whether BMW has finally gone too far, indiscriminately slapping its “M” brand on something that is less than true to the “M” heritage.
Lindsay Lohan -- The Cure for Writer's Block
Those of you following my blog (both of you) may have noticed that I’ve been suffering from a nasty case of writer’s block, as I haven’t posted anything for about 2 months. Thankfully, I have been cured. Lindsay Lohan is my muse.
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Recent Posts
- ICANN Approves New gTLDs, Kicks Off Global Money-Grab
- There's An App For That - But Only From Apple...?
- Update: Social Network Privacy Settings Still Mean Nothing in New York
- Interbrand's Top 100 Global Brands for 2010 Released
- Bad Brand Decision from Audi "Rears" Its Ugly Head?
- Court Rules on Social Media Sites' Privacy Settings
- Supreme Court's Ruling in American Needle Creates Uncertainty Over Future of NFL Licensing
- Facebook: Now Presenting, "Brand Destruction!"
- Time to Update Your Facebook Settings... Again
- Brand Dilution At Its Finest: BMW's New "M" Bicycle