Dust inspires trademark infringement

Bonjour mes amis!

"Designer" dust plugs are no better than counterfeit purses.

By now you may have seen the dust plugs made to fit into the headphone jack in your cell phone. Many of these charms are modeled after a famous designer handbag. These look-alikes also sport the trademarks of the handbags from which they are designed. Yup, by "sport" I mean further infringe. Assuming there was no licensing agreement with the original designers copied, these charms infringe on the trademark owner's exclusive right to use or authorize use of marks.

Source: 2.bp.blogspot.com via Fashion on Pinterest

 Have you seen these phone charms in person or online on places like Etsy, Pinterest, or Instagram? 

 

Source: artfire.com via Fashion on Pinterest

Although the designers being copied are not creating their own versions of these charms, these charms still constitute infringement. If you are a long-time reader of my blog you may recall my post, Infringement for the love of fashion, about trademark infringing cell phone cases I found on Etsy.

Successful trademark registration does not give a mark owner exclusive ownership of words; however, a trademark owner gets the right to oversee use of the mark and prevent use of a confusingly similar mark in the same line of goods or services.

Can you determine which brand's popularity is being used to sell the following dust plugs? 

Source: etsy.com via Fashion on Pinterest

Source: olx.com.sg via Fashion on Pinterest

Owners of famous marks gain broader rights over their marks. These owners can prevent use of their marks on goods that do not compete with their product. Many factors can be taken into consideration when a trademark owner goes against someone else's used mark:

• Degree of similarity
• Strength of trademark
• Existence of customer confusion
• Evidence of dilution
• Lack of sophistication on part of buyers to distinguish between the products

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What's in a name? | Branding post

Bonjour mes amis!

 

What's in a name?

"That which we call a rose,


By any other name would smell as sweet" 

Well, sometimes a name is everything. At least when it comes to branding.

Nokia is capitalizing on its strong maps reputation with a new product it (re)named HERE. It offers users a number of new features: 3D imaging via its web platform, save and share locations feature for cross-platform access, and a points-of-interest recommendations feature based on your location. My favorite feature is the MAP EDITING one that will allow you to add roads and paths that aren’t present and share them with others. 

So, if you have an easement over someone's real property you can feel free to sketch it out on your map. How cool is that? And for those who know why I said real property, you are cool. For those of you who know what an easement is without googling it, you are beyond cool!

Nokia Maps were already available on the web but this product is being rebranded. Check out the new look of HERE below.

 

Above are some screen shots I took off of my iPhone's HERE app.

Instead of building off of its Nokia brand, Nokia is separating its mapping business by making it a standalone business under the name “Here.”

What the rebranding means for Nokia Maps

• The rebranding means that Nokia’s name will not be attached to the product and the “Here” name will be instead used.

Reasons a company should use its existing trademarks on new products or services:

• A company working off of its established reputation may find it easier and beneficial to license its new products using its existing company name and/or other popular trademark. Licensing a service or product with a known name adds credibility to the new service or product. 
• Licensing can promote the continued growth and positive perceptions of an existing trademark; however, it may also be official to start a new brand to link with an existing trademark.

Reasons for a company not to use its existing trademark on its new product or service:

• A new unknown name may be beneficial when pitching to companies that can be competitors in any services or products. A company that may be a competitor in another realm may be unwilling to license the company’s products because the company, potentially a competitor, may see the licensed use of the product as promotion of the product’s company. Yet this business would likely be more susceptible to a licensing agreement if a new trademark were attached to the product or service, so that the consumers would not necessarily automatically think of the product’s owner.
• When pitching the new idea to outside companies, the original company can still benefit from its existing trademark. Also, when an established brand works with another company that has an established name, the partnering company may not be fond of having another brand's name displayed on a project they are helping create or fund. 

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Petite Fashion Challenge #22

I am happy to host this month's Petite Fashion Challenge. I had to get my pics together last minute so I appreciate all of the participants who joined this challenge during such a busy month!

Cute cold weather shopping clothes! 

    

To read my original PFC announcement that tells how I chose the challenge, click here.

    

This month's challenge

"The weather outside is frightful, but indoor shopping is warm and delightful. So, whether you have wind, rain, or snow, show me your clothes when shopping for friends or foes! 

...And yes, extra cool points will be granted for pictures taken while shopping!"