Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%
Call 855-808-4530 or email [email protected] to receive your discount on a new subscription.
Enforcement Issues Raised By Geographically Descriptive Marks
How do famous, but geographically descriptive, trademarks impact the ability of second-comers to trade off the fame of the location? For example, your client, Skim Co., wants to start a booking service to receive Internet and telephone traffic to book lodging and other services at the fictitious Emerild Island off the Louisiana coast. After Hurricane Katrina, Emerild Island, Inc. purchased coastal land on Emerild Island for a pittance, built the luxurious Emerild Island Resort and Spa, collected old trains, cars, boats and other debris from the hurricane, and sunk them off the resort. Emerild Island, Inc.'s artificial reef quickly became a beacon for marine life and the tourist trade then followed, drawn mainly by the exciting diving and other amenities available through Emerild Island Resort and Spa, now famous the world over. The sleepy motels, tourist homes and Cajun restaurants in the area are now thriving and a number of dive shops, including Emerild Island Divers, have opened up. Your client wants to obtain the vanity phone number and service mark 1-800-EMERILD, and act as a booking agent for many of the local businesses, including the Resort and Spa. He wants to know if a trademark infringement suit by Emerild Island, Inc. would put him out of business.
You tell your client that the safest course would be to pick a fanciful mark for its new booking business. You advise your client that he will have problems protecting 1-800-EMERILD because of its geographically descriptive nature. 'What about 1-800-GUTLESS,' you suggest. He quickly develops an opinion as to your business sense and concludes the meeting with a request that you deliver a clearance opinion on his 1-800-EMERILD idea.
The District Court Weighs In: Vail Associates, Inc. v. Vend-Tel-Co., Ltd.
This premium content is locked for Entertainment Law & Finance subscribers only
ENJOY UNLIMITED ACCESS TO THE SINGLE SOURCE OF OBJECTIVE LEGAL ANALYSIS, PRACTICAL INSIGHTS, AND NEWS IN ENTERTAINMENT LAW.
- Stay current on the latest information, rulings, regulations, and trends
- Includes practical, must-have information on copyrights, royalties, AI, and more
- Tap into expert guidance from top entertainment lawyers and experts
Already a have an account? Sign In Now Log In Now
For enterprise-wide or corporate acess, please contact Customer Service at [email protected] or 877-256-2473
Major Differences In UK, U.S. Copyright Laws
This article highlights how copyright law in the United Kingdom differs from U.S. copyright law, and points out differences that may be crucial to entertainment and media businesses familiar with U.S law that are interested in operating in the United Kingdom or under UK law. The article also briefly addresses contrasts in UK and U.S. trademark law.
The Article 8 Opt In
The Article 8 opt-in election adds an additional layer of complexity to the already labyrinthine rules governing perfection of security interests under the UCC. A lender that is unaware of the nuances created by the opt in (may find its security interest vulnerable to being primed by another party that has taken steps to perfect in a superior manner under the circumstances.
Strategy vs. Tactics: Two Sides of a Difficult Coin
With each successive large-scale cyber attack, it is slowly becoming clear that ransomware attacks are targeting the critical infrastructure of the most powerful country on the planet. Understanding the strategy, and tactics of our opponents, as well as the strategy and the tactics we implement as a response are vital to victory.
Legal Possession: What Does It Mean?
Possession of real property is a matter of physical fact. Having the right or legal entitlement to possession is not "possession," possession is "the fact of having or holding property in one's power." That power means having physical dominion and control over the property.
The Anti-Assignment Override Provisions
UCC Sections 9406(d) and 9408(a) are one of the most powerful, yet least understood, sections of the Uniform Commercial Code. On their face, they appear to override anti-assignment provisions in agreements that would limit the grant of a security interest. But do these sections really work?