Fourth Circuit’s Rosetta Stone v. Google Opinion Pushes Back Resolution of Keyword Advertising Legality Another 5-10 Years

April 10, 2012 · by

…hold that Google *directly* liable for trademark infringement for keyword ad sales, because Google’s products/services or marketing do not confuse consumers about the source and origin of marketplace offerings. If…

Brief Brand Reference in TV Ad Constitutes Trademark Dilution–Louis Vuitton v. Hyundai

April 2, 2012 · by

…Back in 2007, we held a major academic symposium on the trademark dilution doctrine at SCU. My main goal was to see if two dozen leading trademark academics could find…

What Do Soymilk and Nutella Have to Do With an Online Harassment Case?–Taylor v. Texas

March 30, 2012 · by

…says she claims to be a direct descendant of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. Her website now makes different dubious claims about her lineage. The defendant, Christopher Mark Taylor, claims he…

Facebook Faces Jurisdictional Hurdle in its Trademark Lawsuit Against Faceporn–Facebook v. Pedersen

March 15, 2012 · by

…pretty active on the trademark front, suing among other sites Lamebook (“Lamebook Faces Down Facebook“) and Teachbook (“Facebook’s Trademark Suit Against Teachbook Survives Motion to Dismiss“). Interestingly, in both of…

Attempted Trademark Workaround to 47 USC 230 Immunity Fails Badly—Ascentive v. PissedConsumer [Catch-Up Post]

January 15, 2012 · by

…to review it, and trademark’s doctrinal plasticity means that such references arguably support a prima facie trademark claim. (I explain that issue more in my Online Word of Mouth paper)….

Updates on Transborder Copyright Enforcement Over “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer”–Shropshire v. Canning

January 9, 2012 · by

…Canning has 3 lawyers from Mark Lanier’s law firm (not Lanier himself). Seriously, guys? We’re talking about a comparatively obscure YouTube video, not Obamacare! Putting aside the many quirks of…

Trademark Owner Can’t Hold GoDaddy Liable for Domain Name Forwarding — Berhad v. GoDaddy

January 7, 2012 · by

…would conclusively establish bad faith intent to profit by the underlying registrant.] Cancellation of Petronas’s Mark: GoDaddy asserted counterclaims and sought to cancel Petronas’s mark. Petronas argued that GoDaddy lacked…

Nov.-Dec. 2011 Quick Links, Part 3

January 4, 2012 · by

…context, enforcing an arbitration clause posted to the web that was incorporated by reference in the vendor’s invoices. * Spam Arrest v. Marketingesquire complaint: Spam Arrest sues an email marketer…

Keyword Advertiser Mostly Defeats Trademark Lawsuit–Scooter Store v. SpinLife

January 4, 2012 · by

…retail stores, because the PTO rejected that usage as generic. TSS asserted that SpinLife’s keyword ads and metatags infringed its trademark rights. The court ultimately concludes that “The Scooter Store”…

I’m Not a Fan of this Craptastic Trademark Lawsuit–Fancaster v. Comcast

January 3, 2012 · by

…this long-running litigation money-sink (going over 3.5 years) as the saddest trademark case of 2011. Fancaster registered its mark in 1989 for broadcasting services, and over the years it’s been…

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