Category Archives: dilution

Ad of the day: does Louboutin have a claim?

Posted on August 7, 2015 by rtushnet

Association? Dilution? Would any of the dilution exceptions apply? Via SocImages. http://tushnet.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss

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Transformative use of the day, Lululemon edition

Posted on July 30, 2015 by rtushnet

I can’t wait to carry this bag around and watch the double-takes.  (Would also fit well on Welcome to Night Vale.) http://tushnet.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss

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Somehow the Coke bottle survived this dilutive free riding

Posted on July 30, 2015 by rtushnet

1962 Doyle Dane Bernbach ad for the VW Beetle: Headline: 2 shapes known the world over. Text: Nobody really notices Coke bottles or Volkswagens any more. They’re so well known, they blend in with the scenery…. (The only reason you … Continue reading →

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4th Circuit adopts Rogers, lifts injunction against disparaging reference to NAACP

Posted on May 21, 2015 by rtushnet

Radiance Foundation, Inc. v. National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, No. 14-1568 (4th Cir. May 19, 2015)   The Radiance Foundation published an article online entitled “NAACP: National Association for the Abortion of Colored People” that criticized the … Continue reading →

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Answer unclear in Clearly beverage infringement case

Posted on May 8, 2015 by rtushnet

Clearly Food & Beverage Co. v. Top Shelf Beverages, Inc., No. C13–1763, 2015 WL 1926503 (W.D. Wash. Apr. 28, 2015)   Plaintiff Clearly Food owns, by a 2012 assignment from the defunct Clearly Canadian corporation, a registration for Clearly Canadian … Continue reading →

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Campbell conference: ethical and strategic issues in fair use litigation

Posted on April 17, 2015 by rtushnet

Panel III. Ethical and Strategic Issues in Fair Use Litigation (Moderator, Professor Naeve)   Naeve: discuss ethics of parody, disparagement, use in pornographic work. Should you ask permission?   Lydia Loren, Lewis & Clark: for all its positive effects, she … Continue reading →

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Loked and loaded: are bag closures famous to the general consuming public?

Posted on April 13, 2015 by rtushnet

Schutte Bagclosures Inc. v. Kwik Lok Corp., 48 F. Supp. 3d 675 (S.D.N.Y. 2014)   Kwik Lok makes clips to close bags in the US, and Schutte does so in Europe and is seeking to expand to the US.  Schutte … Continue reading →

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Bad 230 ruling for LivingSocial

Posted on March 23, 2015 by rtushnet

Faegin v. LivingSocial, Inc., 2015 WL 1198654, No. 14cv00418 (S.D. Cal. Mar. 16, 2015)   After losing its attempt to mandate arbitration, LivingSocial gets a terrible §230 ruling in this trademark infringement etc. case involving vouchers it sold.   The … Continue reading →

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Court misapplies FTDA, not TDRA, to political speech

Posted on March 2, 2015 by rtushnet

Hershey Co. v. Friends of Steve Hershey, 2015 WL 795841, No. WDQ–14–1825. (D. Md. Feb. 24, 2015)   Disappointing ruling on political speech and infringement now supplemented by flat-out wrong ruling on dilution.  Hershey sued the Friends of Steve Hershey … Continue reading →

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Trademark overreach of the day: ICE says "Yankees Suck" infringes

Posted on January 31, 2015 by rtushnet

Your tax dollars at work, protecting America from infringing merchandise: I don’t have much brief for protecting counterfeits, but I find it hard to believe this is the best use of public resources: “Gross misspellings of superstars’ names are one … Continue reading →

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