LVMH announced that a French civil court has granted it a Euro200,000 award against Google for selling keywords consisting of LVMH trademarks to, among others, ‘counterfeitors.’ Details to follow.
Anti-Brand Article
BLOG Trademark Watch
The term BLOGOSPHERE has no hits on TESS. The string BLOG produces 17 hits, the oldest being NBA BLOG SQUAD and the newest being BLOG-N-PLAY
Beat State!
University of Missouri battles Southwest Missouri State University over rights to MISSOURI STATE UNIVERSITY, via Columbia Tribune.
Trademark Attorneys vs. Solicitors in the UK
Via Legal Week: In the UK, which does not have a U.S.-style unified bar, this article discssues growing rights of trademark attorneys vis-a-vis solicitors.
OK, it’s barristers who wear horsehair wigs, not solicitors. You come up with a visual.
COOLWHITE Descriptive Of Gum In China
Via Xinhua: Wrigley loses protection of COOLWHITE on descriptiveness grounds in the PRC.
One Fewer Headache For The Shelby Coupe
We reported on a dispute regarding the Shelby Coupe and ran that cool photo (of an allegedly infringing coupe) in 2003. Now Shelby has announced a settlement with one of the entities that allegedly violate the trade dress of the famous Shelby Coupe.
And Now, A Word On Behalf Of Non-Disclosure Agreements
Via Sportsbusinessnews.com via Sports Law Blog: Season Tickets is suing Ticketmaster for breach of a non-disclosure agreement, alleging that Ticketmaster stole trade secret information while engaged in subsequently-aborted talks to buy the company.
On the one hand, another argument to get clients to get the NDA signed before they take the meeting. On the other hand, another reminder that suing a former suitor for breach of a NDA is not much of a consolation prize when merger talks fail.
Doc Busted For Bootleg BOTOX
Fake BOTOX, via CNN.COM.
SpongeBob Gets Religion
The caption to this photo from the United Church of Christ reads:
SpongeBob meets with the Rev. John H. Thomas, the UCC’s general minister and president, in his office. Explains Thomas, “No matter who you are or where you are on life’s journey, SpongeBob, you’re welcome here.”
This one of series of photos illustrating SpongeBob’s visit to UCC after his encounter with the “Focus on Family” Group.
A concerned reader who happens to maintain an IP blog asks:
“Infringement? Dilution? Or just a sponge in a church?”