China has stopped re-directing requests to Google although, according to this article from siliconvalley.com, China doesn’t acknowledge that it ever did in the fist place).
September 2002
Al Fross
I thought I was going to write about 9/11 today but that has turned out not to be the case. This morning I received an email from a colleague with the subject “Al Fross.” Al has had cancer for four years now, so I knew my colleague was writing to tell me Al…
More on the Parody Defense to Trademark Infringement
This time involving falwell.com (via news.com).
China and Google
Ben Edelman of Harvard (see prior references) has been tracking the Chinese government’s attempts to block access to Google. The latest turn in this saga is that the PRC government, it appears, is re-directing traffic intended for Google to other search engines. Ben has produced a report with screen shots which I undertand to…
Where's The Beef?
AFLAC is of the view that a white duck quacking functions as its trademark. While annoying, the AFLAC duck is a big success and does good works. Via AP, we learn that AFLAC has protested the use of a white duck quacking on a website at www.taftquack.com promoting the candidate opposing Governor Taft of…
Or, the View From Inside The Monitor
Via Copyfight, an interpretation of the term “mirror-site.”
Update: and then, seconds later, I see a Google version of the same joke, via Doc Searls.
When Will The Fifth Harry Potter Book Come Out, Already?
The latest affirmation from the Federal Circuit that single titles of books do not function as trademarks. Even though a party sold a million copies of THE CROSSWORD COMPANION to Walmart in 1993, 1993 would only serve as its date of first trademark use of the term if it published another book in a series…
It's Football Season
This from the Clarion Ledger of Missippi regarding Ole Miss’ attempts to police its trademarks.
Brand As Navigator continued: Paid Search
In going through the backlog created by the move to suburbia, I found this news.com article on ‘paid’ search engines modifying the labeling of their search results, under FTC pressure. See here for background.
"Retain a trademark lawyer for me, at once, Smithers!" "Yes, Mr. Burns."
Via cnn.com, a minor league baseball franchise, the Calgary Cannons (a Marlins affiliate), is moving to New Mexico, where it will be re-named the Albuquerque Isotopes, in honor of Homer Simpson’s favorite team, the Springfield Isotopes, which, in Episode 15, Year 12 of The Simpsons, was moved by its owner, Duff Beer, from Springfield to…