--- Date: Mon, 02 Jul 2001 10:20:43 -0400 Subject: Re: FC: More on Mastercard lawyers threatening Attrition.org over satire From: "Wendy Leibowitz" <wendytechat_private> To: declanat_private Mr. Leavitt is correct that trademark lawyers are required to "zealously defend" their clients' trademarks. Until recently this was interpreted as meaning that vicious letters went out to anyone using a client's trademark, or something similar to a client's trademark. (Remember Pokey.org, the 12-year old boy called Pokey who got those letters, and eventually a lawsuit, from the lawyers for Art Clokey, inventor of Gumby and his little red horse, Pokey?) The resultant bad publicity did a great deal of damage to the client, as Mastercard is discovering in this case, and as the lawyers for Warner Brothers discovered when they fired off threatening letters to little Harry Potter fans. Not every use of a trademark is infringement, and there are many tools to fight infringement other than threats. In the face of the Internet, I think trademark lawyers are changing their tactics. At least sophisticated trademark lawyers are--Mastercard doesn't seem to have those, yet. (They rightly threatened Ralph Nader's ads because, in part, you don't want your company to appear to endorse any political candidate). If they played this parody with a little sense of humor, they would get valuable publicity for their client, remind the world of trademark rights, and get even more mileage out of a successful and memorable ad campaign. I wrote an article about new trademark tactics. (I used to send those stupid threatening letters). It's at http://www.wendytech.com/articlesnyresolntm.htm Best regards, Wendy Wendy R. Leibowitz Legal Technology Columnist Editor, E-Filing Report 1140 23rd St. NW Washington, DC 20037 http://www.wendytech.com "Remember, even pencils break." --John F. Kennedy ------------------------------------------------------------------------- POLITECH -- Declan McCullagh's politics and technology mailing list You may redistribute this message freely if you include this notice. To subscribe, visit http://www.politechbot.com/info/subscribe.html This message is archived at http://www.politechbot.com/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------
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