Think Keyword Metatags Are Dead? They Are (Except in Court)–Reflex v. Luxy
Check your calendar. Yes, it’s 2021. But trademark plaintiffs and judges are still partying like it’s 1999. The plaintiff is Seeking Arrangements, one of my favorite websites to base my Internet Law exams on. The defendant is a competitor, Luxy….
Fifth Circuit Says Keyword Ads Could Contribute to Initial Interest Confusion (UGH)–Adler v. McNeil
Jim Adler runs a personal injury law firm that claims trademarks in JIM ADLER, THE HAMMER, TEXAS HAMMER, and EL MARTILLO TEJANO. The defendants run the Accident Injury Legal Center, which runs a lawyer referral service. It bids on the…
Satirical Depiction in YouTube Video Gets Rough Treatment in Court
Goodman made and posted a YouTube video called the “Crony Awards,” bestowing honors on countries that downplayed the COVID-19 virus. Because the court says Goodman’s company “traffics in wild conspiracy theories,” it’s likely the video actually celebrates countries for COVID…
Google’s Search Disambiguation Doesn’t Create Initial Interest Confusion–Aliign v. lululemon
Aliign “is an event, lifestyle, and apparel company” allegedly with a first trademark use in 2011. Since 2014, they have sold a total of 7 units of apparel (5 of which were bought by the CEO’s friends). lululemon is the…
1H 2021 Quick Links, Part 1 (IP)
Trademarks and Domain Names * Kid Car NY, LLC v. Kidmoto Techs. LLC, 2021 WL 466975 (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 9, 2021): “At the motion to dismiss stage, Kidmoto has plausibly alleged more than just the purchase of a competitor’s mark as…
RedBubble Gets Another Favorable Ruling–YZ Productions v. RedBubble
Rebecca Zamolo appears to be a YouTuber/influencer who merchandises her brand in multiple ways. She claims that RedBubble users are infringing her IP and counterfeiting her offerings. The complaint includes many images showing the alleged infringements, such as: The court…
Ohio Bans Competitive Keyword Advertising by Lawyers
No one: Absolutely no one: Ohio Board of Professional Conduct (in the third decade of the 21st century….): * * * I guess we’re doing this again. It’s 2021, long past the time consumers have come to understand competitive keyword…
Want to Engage in Anti-Competitive Trademark Bullying? Second Circuit Says: Great, Have a Nice Day!–1-800 Contacts v. FTC
Starting in the mid-2000s, 1-800 Contacts sought to control how its competitors bought search engine advertising triggered by its (so-called) trademarks, a process I call competitive keyword advertising. To do this, 1-800 Contacts typically sued its competitors and then quickly…
Eighth Circuit Embraces the Initial Interest Confusion Doctrine. What??? UGH. No. Why???–Select Comfort v. Baxter
The initial interest confusion doctrine has always been a misguided doctrine that is too easy for plaintiffs to weaponize. Fortunately, the doctrine has been dying for over a decade. Few opinions mention it nowadays, and even fewer cite it in…
Depiction of Michigan as Hands Doesn’t Preclude Similar Depictions–High Five v. MFB
High Five Threads sells t-shirts and tchotchkes. It claims copyright and trademark protection for a depiction of upper and lower Michigan as two hands (left-most image below). People routinely depict lower Michigan as a hand, and apparently others envision the…