Even though President Trump and his family are avid traders of trademarks and manage their last name as a brand in multiple industries, he does not seem to respect others’ intellectual property as he should. Once again, a musician has sent through his lawyers a cease and desist letter to the White House for the use of music in Trump’s political rallies without permission. We already wrote about other complaints to the White House in…
Bad guys are always looking to profit from other people’s properties and intellectual property (such as trademarks) is not the exception. You may be surprised that, yes, people steal businesses names, logos, copyrighted material, and that bad actors are getting more sophisticated in the way they take advantage of the owners. They are going high-tech. Just last week, mid-October 2018, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued an e-mail alerting trademark owners of…
Aretha Franklin’s funeral was fit for the Queen she was, complete with four changes of outfits and several public viewings. To express their admiration and gratitude, her fans traveled from faraway places to be close to her in her final tour. The famous interpreter of RESPECT and Natural Woman died August the 16th, 2018 at the age of 76. Her voice and songs made her the Queen of Soul and the creator of invaluable intellectual property difficult to…
Trump has a collection of letters from Aerosmith. They are not fan letters but cease-and-desist communications. Steven Tyler, Aerosmith lead singer, recently sent the latest cease-and-desist letter to Donald Trump requesting to stop playing the band’s hit song “Livin’ On The Edge” at campaign events. Trump and his campaign managers have been accused several times by several others of using songs without the artists’ permissions. This is a delicate matter. Artists and composers may not want to…
By Kajol Kapadia Can someone own a color on a sole? According to a recent (June 2018) verdict regarding a lawsuit filed by Christian Louboutin against the Dutch retail company, Van Halen, the iconic lacquer red used by the well-known French company, yes, someone can. Christian Louboutin first filed against the brand Van Halen five years ago, claiming that the company had infringed upon its trademark of red-bottomed shoes. Over the years, Christian Louboutin has filed multiple…
