Trademarkology
Brands, Trademarks, and Registration
Trademark Case Law Time Machine- Generic Marks
[caption id="attachment_1173" align="alignright" width="200"] By Anonymous [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons[/caption]Trademarks are the berries, but you can lose them if you aren't careful. Just ask the poor paulies over at Bayer, because Bayer's trademark...
James Franklin and the Branding of Vanderbilt Football
James Franklin made headlines this week when he left Vanderbilt to become the head football coach at Penn State. Franklin spent the last 3 seasons in Nashville as the Commodores' head coach, where he turned...
Brands We Love: Nashville Predators
Call me a homer, but I love the Nashville Predators brand. Can there be a better mascot for a NHL hockey team than a saber-toothed tiger? According to Trademarkology staff paleontologist, Dr. Wik I. Pedia...
Gus Malzahn's "Hurry Up No Huddle" Trademark Strategy
Gus Malzahn's Auburn Tigers might have lost the BCS National Championship Game, but the future is bright for the first-year Auburn head coach and his program. Auburn could be an SEC and national title contender...
The Distinctiveness Spectrum: Fill 'er Up!
Generally speaking, the strength of a mark (and whether it can be registered) depends on its distinctiveness, that is, how descriptive the mark is of the goods and services. The more descriptive, the weaker the...
Lessons from Will Ferrell: Five Steps for Picking a Baby Name
Your business is your baby. Picking the right name for that baby is difficult and incredibly important. It must reflect what your company is and what it aspires to be. It must evoke emotion and...
The Elf on the Shelf Brings Trademark Magic to the Holiday Season
The holiday season is upon us! This means parties, gift giving, and a flurry of merriment. For my wife and me, it also means having our 2-year-old obsess over The Elf on the Shelf. On...
Build Your Brand With Unique Product Packaging
When most people think about trademarks, they think about names, slogans, and logos. Product packaging or "trade dress" can also be protected as trademarks as long as it identifies the source or quality of a...