Beastie Boys v. Monster Energy Adam Yauch, a member of the Beastie Boys, sadly passed away in May 2012. Several days after Yauch’s will became public, the Beastie Boys filed a lawsuit against Monster Energy Company for copyright and trademark infringement and violation of the New York Civil Rights law. The suit alleges that Monster used parts of the band’s songs, including “Sabotage,” “So Whatcha Want,” and “Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun” in promotional videos for Monster Energy Drinks. These videos were used to promote Ruckus in the Rockies, a Monster-sponsored snowboarding event. How did Monster allegedly violate…
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Ben & Jerry’s X-Rated Trademark Dilution Case
September 6, 2012
Ben & Jerry’s X-Rated Trademark Dilution Case Ben & Jerry’s has sued Rodax Distributors, producers of adult DVDs under the brand name “Ben & Cherry’s.” Allegedly, Rodax’s oeuvre includes such masterpieces as “Peanut Butter D-Cups” and “Boston Cream Thigh.” OK, the last one is sort of clever. “But wait,” you say. “Isn’t a trademark necessarily related to the commercial goods and services provided by the owner? Clearly neither Ben nor Jerry is involved in the adult film business; how can they assert trademark rights against Rodax?”
Gold Glove Trademark Battle: Color as a Trademark
August 30, 2012
Gold Glove Trademark Battle If you’re a baseball fan, you’re familiar with Rawlings Gold Glove Award, an award given to various players for their defensive excellence. What you may not know is that Rawlings Sporting Goods owns U.S. trademark registrations for several marks including GOLD GLOVE and GOLD GLOVE AWARD. Rawlings is serious about enforcing their rights against any competitors. In July, Rawlings filed a lawsuit against Wilson Sporting Goods for trademark infringement, trademark dilution, and false advertising, as well as a few state law claims, in connection with its Gold Glove trademarks. In its complaint, Rawlings claimed that Wilson…
Social Media Law Part IV – Privacy and Social Media
August 15, 2012
This is Part IV of a four-part series on Social Media Law. For Part I, click here. For Part II, click here. For Part III, click here. The first three parts of this series covered ownership of work-related social media and a variety of employer-employee issues. For the final portion, I’m taking a look at the controversies concerning social media and privacy concerns.
