Skip To Content

Start typing and press enter to search

Alt Legal Blog

Your source for news, updates and guidance on all things trademarks and intellectual property.

Alt Legal IP News – Issue # 174

Bri Van Til | February 05, 2020
2 min read

Gamers Gonna Game

– Nintendo just renewed dozens of trademarks all at once, leaving fans speculating whether Nintendo is cooking up something new or has just been slacking on renewing its marks.

– In case you’re looking for a place away from home to play your console games, Atari is apparently moving into the hotel industry.

– Does Blizzard own the rights to all content users create using its campaign creator software?

Young People

– A month before he died, Kobe Bryant filed a trademark application for MAMBACITA, his daughter Gianna’s nickname.

– What is the status of copyrights for forever-young Peter Pan and other beloved characters? Apparently, that’s not a simple question to answer.

– Success Kid, the nearly decade-old meme of a toddler pumping his fist, has led to debate about whether memes are copyrightable. The kid’s mom sent a cease-and-desist letter to stop a congressman from using the meme in his campaign advertising.

– Famed Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg has filed EUIPO trademark applications to protect her name and Skolstrejk för Klimatet from being commercialized.

Likelihood of Confusion?

– Smoky Mountain, a pizza company in Idaho, is suing fast food giant KFC for trademark infringement. KFC responded by filing to cancel Smoky Mountain’s trademark, which it alleges was fraudulently obtained.

– Penn State University is suing a Florida man and his brewing company, Penn State Nittany Brewing, for trademark infringement. The man is unaffiliated with the University.

– The City of Chicago is suing Fire Department Coffee, a firefighter-owned coffee shop, for trademark infringement because of the similarity of the coffee shop’s logo with that of the fire department. The City claims there will be a likelihood of confusion. Maybe they’re worried people might start calling 911 and demanding lattes.

Professional Concerns

– Whirlpool is looking for Senior Counsel for its Patent Team, and Harrity & Harrity LLP wants to hire patent attorneys.

– George Mason University wants an IP professional to serve as Deputy Director for the Center for Protection of Intellectual Property.

– Lutzker & Lutzker LLP is seeking a trademark/copyright/litigation paralegal, Hasbro is looking for a trademark and copyright paralegal, and Apple wants a trademark paralegal.

– Have an open role on your team? Send a link to your job listing to community@altlegal.com, and we’ll publish it in our next newsletter.

Odds and Ends

– Check out our latest issue of Beyond the Docket to learn more about how Mario Simonyan went from running a very successful Amazon Private Label company to managing a law firm.

– What’s the best billing system for your legal practice? Here are some alternatives to old-fashioned hourly billing. Another great option is subscription billing. Come to Alt Legal Connect to learn more!

– How can you protect a brand against genericide? Check out this article for a few suggestions. Also check out this fun added tidbit: a dramatization of an actual deposition’s transcript.

– This graphic depiction of several strange automotive patents features some real oddball ideas, but I think a drone car wash would be pretty cool. A super-adhesive car hood? Less so.

– A Bay-Area elementary school’s PTA showed The Lion King at a fundraiser, and now Disney says the organization owes the $250 for the screening.

Switching is easy with free data migration

Request a Demoor sign up for a free trial

We don't support Internet Explorer

Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site.