Category Archives: trademark

Actual confusion irrelevant when Rogers v. Grimaldi applies

Posted on December 12, 2014 by rtushnet

Mil-Spec Monkey, Inc. v. Activision Blizzard, Inc., No. 14-cv-02361 (N.D. Cal. Nov. 24, 2014)  MSM alleged that the video game Call of Duty: Ghosts made infringing use of MSM’s “angry monkey” mark, “among the most popular morale patch designs” MSM … Continue reading →

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plaintiff must identify elements of trade dress, specific false claims

Posted on December 12, 2014 by rtushnet

Homeland Housewares, LLC v. Euro-Pro Operating LLC, 2014 WL 6892141, No. CV 14–03954 (C.D. Cal. Nov. 5, 2014) Previously, the court granted a preliminary injunction on certain false advertising claims and refused to stop the plaintiff from publicizing that.  Now … Continue reading →

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Reading list: Putting Intellectual Property in Its Place

Posted on December 11, 2014 by rtushnet

Laura J. Murray, S. Tina Piper, & Kirsty Robertson, Putting Intellectual Property in Its Place: Rights Discourses, Creative Labor, and the Everyday: Coming at roughly the same time as Jessica Silbey’s The Eureka Myth, this book, like Silbey’s, challenges IP … Continue reading →

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A case peppered with TM and advertising issues

Posted on December 8, 2014 by rtushnet

United Tactical Systems v. Real Action Paintball, Inc., 2014 WL 6788310, No. 14-cv-04050 (N.D. Cal. Dec. 2, 2014) UTS sued RAP4 mostly over the trademark PepperBall; the court granted a preliminary injunction based on some of its claims.  Nonparty PepperBall … Continue reading →

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B&N almost entirely off the hook for copying backpack design

Posted on December 5, 2014 by rtushnet

Rubio v. Barnes & Noble, Inc., 2014 WL 6769150, No. 14–CV–6561 (S.D.N.Y Nov. 11, 2014) Rubio sued her alma mater, the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) and Barnes & Noble, Inc. for copying her original drawing of a backpack, producing … Continue reading →

Posted in copyright, dastar, http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post, right of publicity, standing, trademark, unfairness | Leave a comment

B&B v. Hargis: just one reaction

Posted on December 3, 2014 by rtushnet

When I read the SG’s brief advocating for preclusion as an ordinary result, I was concerned that there was limited understanding of what a registration/opposition proceeding actually is compared to an infringement case.  For example, the SG assumed that in … Continue reading →

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Lamborghini going to pot?

Posted on November 21, 2014 by rtushnet

If “anything can signify anything,” is this equation of a pot with a Lamborghini nominative fair use?  (It’s just an object. It doesn’t mean what you think.) Anything can signify anything billboard, Washington DC Photo by Zach Schrag. http://tushnet.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss

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NPR story on apple varieties and TM as substitute for patent

Posted on November 14, 2014 by rtushnet

The story suggests that control over new varieties could last forever, instead of expiring as previous patents on new varities have, because the varieties are “trademarked.” Query: if the public knows the apple as SweeTango, why isn’t that word the … Continue reading →

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The Eureka Myth: Reputation

Posted on November 7, 2014 by rtushnet

Fourth Session: Reputation and Policy Take-Aways Abraham Drassinower: what does thinking about misalignment tell us how to think about IP?  Move from debunking eureka myth to debunking the myth of progress.  Misalignment of IP with its own justifications, needs of … Continue reading →

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Deadmau5 vs. Disney

Posted on November 5, 2014 by rtushnet

I talk to American Public Media’s Stan Alcorn. http://tushnet.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss

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