Alt Legal IP News – Issue # 174
Bri Van Til | February 05, 2020
Gamers Gonna Game
– Nintendo just renewed dozens of trademarks all at once, leaving fans speculating whether Nintendo is cooking up something new or has just been slacking on renewing its marks.
– In case you’re looking for a place away from home to play your console games, Atari is apparently moving into the hotel industry.
– Does Blizzard own the rights to all content users create using its campaign creator software?
Young People
– A month before he died, Kobe Bryant filed a trademark application for MAMBACITA, his daughter Gianna’s nickname.
– What is the status of copyrights for forever-young Peter Pan and other beloved characters? Apparently, that’s not a simple question to answer.
– Success Kid, the nearly decade-old meme of a toddler pumping his fist, has led to debate about whether memes are copyrightable. The kid’s mom sent a cease-and-desist letter to stop a congressman from using the meme in his campaign advertising.
– Famed Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg has filed EUIPO trademark applications to protect her name and Skolstrejk för Klimatet from being commercialized.
Likelihood of Confusion?
– Smoky Mountain, a pizza company in Idaho, is suing fast food giant KFC for trademark infringement. KFC responded by filing to cancel Smoky Mountain’s trademark, which it alleges was fraudulently obtained.
– Penn State University is suing a Florida man and his brewing company, Penn State Nittany Brewing, for trademark infringement. The man is unaffiliated with the University.
– The City of Chicago is suing Fire Department Coffee, a firefighter-owned coffee shop, for trademark infringement because of the similarity of the coffee shop’s logo with that of the fire department. The City claims there will be a likelihood of confusion. Maybe they’re worried people might start calling 911 and demanding lattes.
Professional Concerns
– Whirlpool is looking for Senior Counsel for its Patent Team, and Harrity & Harrity LLP wants to hire patent attorneys.
– George Mason University wants an IP professional to serve as Deputy Director for the Center for Protection of Intellectual Property.
– Lutzker & Lutzker LLP is seeking a trademark/copyright/litigation paralegal, Hasbro is looking for a trademark and copyright paralegal, and Apple wants a trademark paralegal.
– Have an open role on your team? Send a link to your job listing to [email protected], and we’ll publish it in our next newsletter.
Odds and Ends
– Check out our latest issue of Beyond the Docket to learn more about how Mario Simonyan went from running a very successful Amazon Private Label company to managing a law firm.
– What’s the best billing system for your legal practice? Here are some alternatives to old-fashioned hourly billing. Another great option is subscription billing. Come to Alt Legal Connect to learn more!
– How can you protect a brand against genericide? Check out this article for a few suggestions. Also check out this fun added tidbit: a dramatization of an actual deposition’s transcript.
– This graphic depiction of several strange automotive patents features some real oddball ideas, but I think a drone car wash would be pretty cool. A super-adhesive car hood? Less so.
– A Bay-Area elementary school’s PTA showed The Lion King at a fundraiser, and now Disney says the organization owes the $250 for the screening.