Download or read book Towards a More Coherent Doctrine of Trademark Genericism and Functionality written by Sandra L. Rierson and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page 44 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The doctrines of trademark genericism and functionality serve similar functions under the Lanham Act and the common law of unfair competition. Genericism, in the context of word marks, and functionality, for trade dress, bar trademark registration under the Lanham Act and, both under the Act and at common law, render a trademark unprotectable and invalid. In the word mark context, genericism stands for the proposition that certain parts of our vocabulary cannot be cordoned off as trademarks; all competitors must be able to use words that consumers understand to identify the goods or services that they are selling. Functionality likewise demands that certain aspects of product design cannot be legally protected as trade dress, as to do so would potentially limit competitors' ability to make products that work as well, at the same price. The core concern, for both doctrines, is or should be the preservation of free and fair market competition. The types of trademarks typically at issue when making genericism and functionality determinations - word marks that are, at best, descriptive, or product design functioning as trade dress - are correctly described as weak. The genericism and functionality doctrines therefore play a critical role in marking the boundaries of trademark law. To properly draw those lines, decision makers need to correctly define and understand the theory underlying both doctrines.Both genericism and functionality, in their practical interpretation and purpose, should more clearly reflect the core principle of protecting fair competition. In particular, the concept of viable, competitive alternatives - either in the form of words or alternative designs - should play an enhanced role in determining whether an erstwhile trademark is generic or functional. The various tests for genericism and functionality currently employed by the courts often attempt to draw artificial distinctions among categories of words or product features that may confound business owners (and their lawyers) and divert the focus of the courts' inquiry in such cases away from the core value at the heart of both doctrines: preserving fair competition.
Download or read book Trademark Law and Theory written by Graeme B. Dinwoodie and published by Edward Elgar Publishing. This book was released on 2008 with total page 555 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Boasting an impressive list of contributors, this first edition of Trademark Law and Theory brings together a compilation of well-written and powerfully argued works by leading international academics. The book is certainly one of the most extensive and thought provoking overviews of contemporary trademark law and theory yet to be published. . . Whilst all the contributions share in common their examination of the rapidity of change within trademark systems, the editors should be commended on their generous seasoning of other cross cutting themes throughout the Handbook. . . This fascinating compendium enriches our understanding of the shape, substance, and form of trademark law and theory. . . this Handbook is perhaps a rare exception to the adage that no book can be all things to all men . Its broad sweep approach and cross cutting themes enable a range of interested parties, such as policymakers; academics in the fields of marketing, business, consumer psychology; in addition to the usual suspects; to dip in and out of the Handbook as they wish. . . a unique and erudite collection of essays concerning trademark law and theory. . . Odette Hutchinson, Communications Law Trademarks is an area of vital, practical everyday concern, and the idea of producing a volume that brings together the perspectives of 19 thoughtful and experienced legal scholars is a bold and exciting initiative. The present volume does not disappoint and the two editors are to be congratulated on orchestrating an ensemble that simultaneously informs and stimulates. The title is apt: it is truly contemporary and is highly theoretical and doctrinal in character, while the interesting choice of the word handbook suggests clearly that this is a work in progress, a snapshot at a particular time of the challenging lines of individual research that each contributor to the volume is undertaking. It is a fine addition to a larger series of research handbooks in intellectual property published by Edward Elgar under the series editorship of Jeremy Phillips. . . The editors have done a fine job in presenting this material in such a clear and coherent fashion. . . this is an excellent and rewarding volume of readings that will be of interest to anyone working in the area of trademarks, whether as an academic or as a practitioner. Indeed, for the practitioner it will be of particular value, in that it contains, and opens up, many areas of inquiry that may not always be apparent when working at the coalface of a particular problem. . . For both kinds of readers, the real value of the volume is to have so many different kinds of perspectives brought together within the space of a single volume. . . this is a handsome production: the publishers and editors are to be commended on the clarity and cleanness of the typeface and headings, the thoroughness of the index, and the accuracy of their proof reading. It has also been given a striking and evocative cover. Sam Ricketson, University of Melbourne Law School Australia, European Intellectual Property Review Trademark Law and Theory is a first-rate exploration of the issues that will dominate trademark law in the 21st century. Authors from five continents provide a truly global perspective on the present and future of trademark law. An exceptional collection of contributors and contributions. Robert Denicola, University of Nebraska, US This compendium is an excellent source of writing on all aspects of trademark law and practice by experts from Europe, the United States, South Africa, Singapore, New Zealand and Australia. It will be a stimulating read for lawyers, academics, students and policymakers alike on the present and developing trends in law and policy relating to trademarks as marketing tools and cultural artefacts. The editors deserve congratulation on their concept for the book and their judicious selection of material. David Vaver, University of Oxford, UK All students, young and older, in the burgeoni
Download or read book Confronting the Genericism Conundrum written by Deven R. Desai and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The doctrine of genericism - under which a court may determine a previously valuable mark is or has become generic, thus losing all trademark status and value - has been under theorized since work authored by Professors Folsom and Teply in 1980. Yet in the interim, the expansion of intellectual property rights has changed the landscape of the balance between rights holders and the public. For example recent lawsuits and articles have drawn attention to a growing issue in intellectual property law, the aggressive and arguably abusive tactics of intellectual property ("IP") rights holders. Indeed in the trademark context, some maintain and there are arguments to support the idea that trademark holders bring these actions as a means of manipulating the public through direct control of the public's ability to use language. Nonetheless, if one supposes for a moment that trademark holders and their counsel are acting at some level of good faith and are rational, it may be that something else in the law itself drives this otherwise questionable behavior. This paper argues that the doctrine of genericism as it is currently applied forces the trademark holder to police her rights in this extreme manner for fear of losing her mark. Specifically, this paper investigates the theoretical and historical evolution of the doctrine and posits that current genericism doctrine has strayed far from its roots, which are in consumer understanding in the marketplace and enhancing competition, and now concerns itself with an inappropriate property type of analysis that places great weight on non-commercial and/or non-competitive trademark use contexts (e.g., dictionary entries, newspapers, noncompetitive third-party uses, etc.). This focus leads to inefficient results, i.e., trademark holders engaging in extensive advertising, letter campaigns, and litigation to try to protect the mark and prevent it from being deemed generic. As such this paper argues that the doctrine should be re-anchored to focus on the mark's ability to act as a source identifier for the consumer in commercial contexts. Re-focusing genericism on consumer contexts rather than non-consumer, expressive contexts will allow the analysis to embrace a more sophisticated, broad understanding of trademarks. This approach recognizes a term's ability to perform more than one function in language depending on the user of the term and the context of the term's use (i.e., commercial and non-commercial). In addition, this revised understanding of genericism would undermine trademark holders' ability to claim the need to engage in what would otherwise be frivolous and/or abusive enforcement strategies, because they could no longer hang their collective hat on the excuse that they were required to do so to avoid falling victim to genericism. In short, this retooling of the doctrine would allow trademark owners to enjoy the full benefits of the source identifying functions of their marks while at the same time creating a space in which the public may enjoy full use of the terms without fear of reprisal by mark owners.
Download or read book EU Trade Mark Law and Product Protection written by Lavinia Brancusi and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2023-07-13 with total page 290 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book employs scholarly analysis to ground practical tools for applying the EU Trade Mark law (EUTM) functionality refusal grounds to address business needs when registering trade marks consisting of product characteristics. The study comprehensively examines the absolute grounds for a refusal of registration of functional signs under EUTM. It interprets the functionality refusal grounds through objective tests, focusing on the pro-competition rationale of denying trade mark exclusivity on product features that are technically or aesthetically important for competitors’ ability to trade in alternative products. The work takes a comparative approach looking at the US trade dress functionality doctrine, and a law and economics perspective on the role of trade marks and brands in the marketplace. It explores how competition rules related to market definition and the substitutability of products, as well as marketing and design findings related to branding and aesthetics, could be integrated into the legal assessment of EUTM functionality. The volume will be of interest to academics and researchers working in the areas of Intellectual Property Law, Trade Mark and Design Law, EU Law, Comparative Law, and Branding.
Download or read book Transition and Coherence in Intellectual Property Law written by Niklas Bruun and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2021-01-07 with total page 531 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume is for students and scholars of intellectual property law, practitioners seeking creative arguments from across the field, and policymakers searching for solutions to changing social and technological issues. The book explores the tensions between two fundamentally competing demands made of IP law.
Download or read book Australian Trade Mark Law written by Robert Burrell and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2016 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Australian Trade Mark Law Second Edition provides a comprehensive overview of trade mark law in Australia and encourages readers to critically engage with the operation of the Australian trade mark system as a whole. It moves beyond a purely descriptive account of existing legislation and case law to help readers to view and question the law through a critical lens. It questions the functioning of the trade mark system as well as the decisions made by courts, the legislature and administrative bodies that have shaped such a system. As well as critically assessing how the trademark system could work better in the future, Australian Trade Mark Law presents comparative material that illustrates how other jurisdictions deal with particular issues and problems.
Download or read book McCarthy on Trademarks and Unfair Competition written by J. Thomas McCarthy and published by Clark Boardman Callaghan. This book was released on 1996 with total page 1186 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Kentucky Law Journal written by and published by . This book was released on 1920 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Beginnings of Modern Psychology written by William Matthew O'Neil and published by Sussex : Harvester Press. This book was released on 1982 with total page 168 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Joint Recommendation Concerning Provisions on the Protection of Well Known Marks written by World Intellectual Property Organization and published by WIPO. This book was released on 2000 with total page 34 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Recommendation is the first implementation of WIPO's policy to adapt to the pace of change in the field of industrial property by considering new options for accelerating the development of international harmonized common principles. It provides a set of guidelines for the protection of well-known marks that are recommended to States.
Download or read book The Oxford Handbook of Intellectual Property Law written by Rochelle Cooper Dreyfuss and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2018 with total page 1025 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A comprehensive overview of intellectual property law, this handbook will be a vital read for all invested in the field of IP law. Topics include the foundations of IP law; its emergence and development in various jurisdictions; its rules and principles; and current issues arising from the existence and operation of IP law in a political economy.
Download or read book Trademark Surveys written by Jacob Jacoby (Researcher in economics) and published by American Bar Association. This book was released on 2013 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Trademark Surveys provides the most expansive and cohesive treatment of the topic of survey research and its use in the courts. A complete revision of a long out-of-print resource, the two volumes that comprise Trademark Surveys will help attorneys understand and improve the quality of survey research proffered as evidence in litigated proceedings. Volume 1 begins with a discussion of critical pre-survey considerations, from the legal issues that can be examined via survey research to the reasons for and uses of survey research. The majority of this volume is authored by Jack Jacoby, a prominent social scientist who commands substantial expertise with all aspects in the construction, analysis, and application of trademark surveys in litigation. Case law commentary is woven into the discussion in each chapter. Topics in Volume I include: the elements of designing, conducting, and reporting surveys; understanding pertinent aspects of the marketplace; overview of the scientific research process; defining the proper universe; sampling issues; test settings and stimuli; questionnaire construction; implementing the survey and gathering data; numerous issues in aggregating, evaluating, and reporting survey findings"--Unedited summary from book.
Download or read book The Cambridge Handbook of International and Comparative Trademark Law written by Irene Calboli and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2020-09-24 with total page 1176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Trade in goods and services has historically resisted territorial confinement, but trademark protection remains territorial, albeit within an increasingly important framework of multilateral treaties. Trademark law therefore demands that practitioners, policy-makers and academics understand principles of international and comparative law. This handbook assists in that endeavour, with chapters describing and critically analyzing international and regional frameworks, and providing comparative perspectives on the substantive issues in trademark law and related fields, such as geographic indications, advertising law, and domain names. Chapters contrast common law and civil law approaches while focusing on the US and EU trademark systems in light of the role these systems have played in the development of trademark laws. Additionally, this handbook covers other jurisdictions, both common law and civil law, on the Asia-Pacific, African, and South American continents. This work should be read by anyone seeking a better understanding of trademark law around the world.
Download or read book The Coding Manual for Qualitative Researchers written by Johnny Saldana and published by SAGE. This book was released on 2009-02-19 with total page 282 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Coding Manual for Qualitative Researchers is unique in providing, in one volume, an in-depth guide to each of the multiple approaches available for coding qualitative data. In total, 29 different approaches to coding are covered, ranging in complexity from beginner to advanced level and covering the full range of types of qualitative data from interview transcripts to field notes. For each approach profiled, Johnny Saldaña discusses the method’s origins in the professional literature, a description of the method, recommendations for practical applications, and a clearly illustrated example.
Download or read book Command Of The Air written by General Giulio Douhet and published by Pickle Partners Publishing. This book was released on 2014-08-15 with total page 620 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the pantheon of air power spokesmen, Giulio Douhet holds center stage. His writings, more often cited than perhaps actually read, appear as excerpts and aphorisms in the writings of numerous other air power spokesmen, advocates-and critics. Though a highly controversial figure, the very controversy that surrounds him offers to us a testimonial of the value and depth of his work, and the need for airmen today to become familiar with his thought. The progressive development of air power to the point where, today, it is more correct to refer to aerospace power has not outdated the notions of Douhet in the slightest In fact, in many ways, the kinds of technological capabilities that we enjoy as a global air power provider attest to the breadth of his vision. Douhet, together with Hugh “Boom” Trenchard of Great Britain and William “Billy” Mitchell of the United States, is justly recognized as one of the three great spokesmen of the early air power era. This reprint is offered in the spirit of continuing the dialogue that Douhet himself so perceptively began with the first edition of this book, published in 1921. Readers may well find much that they disagree with in this book, but also much that is of enduring value. The vital necessity of Douhet’s central vision-that command of the air is all important in modern warfare-has been proven throughout the history of wars in this century, from the fighting over the Somme to the air war over Kuwait and Iraq.
Download or read book Intellectual Property on the Internet written by World Intellectual Property Organization and published by WIPO. This book was released on 2002 with total page 142 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Report addresses the far-reaching impact that digital technologies-- the Internet in particular-- have had on intellectual property (IP) and the international IP system.
Download or read book Gowers Review of Intellectual Property written by Andrew Gowers and published by The Stationery Office. This book was released on 2006-12-06 with total page 152 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This report examines the importance of intellectual property (IP), ranging from patents, copyright, design and trade marks, and whether in the age of globalization, digitization and increasing economic specialization it still creates incentives for innovation, without unduly limiting access to consumers and stifling further innovation. The report does recommend a radical overhaul of the system, with the review concentrating on three areas, and setting out the following recommendations: (i) strengthening enforcement of IP rights, whether through clamping down on piracy or trade in counterfeit goods; (ii) reducing costs of registering and litigating IP rights for businesses large and small; (iii) improving the balance and flexibility of IP rights to allow individuals, businesses and institutions to use content in ways consistent with the digital age.
