Louis Vuitton fails to see the humour – My Other Bag succeeds with parody defense.

Louis Vuitton Advised to “Smile or Laugh”, Not Sue

We have all seen the bumper sticker: My other car is a Porsche.

And the bag: My other bag is a Louis Vuitton.

Do they make you feel any less of Porsche or Louis Vuitton?

A U.S. District Court Judge has found that My Other Bag’s use of Louis Vuitton on its canvas totes does not amount to trademark infringement.

Registered Trademarks – Your Trump Card

Business owners are often hesitant to register their trademarks and are unaware that failing to do so could expose their business to greater expenses than those associated with trademark registration. A competitor with a registered trademark has the right to force a business to stop using an unregistered trademark if it is confusingly similar to their registered trademark.

Staying Onside with FIFA: Trademarks and the World Cup

The World Cup attracts some of the biggest brand name sponsors in the world including Adidas, MacDonald’s, Sony and Budweiser.   FIFA official partners reportedly pay $20-50 million per event to take part as sponsors in the World Cup. This year the total financial contributions to FIFA by the 20 official business partners of the World Cup reached an estimated $1.4 billion.

A Wise Choice – New all-encompassing Trademark and Brand Protection Services from WISES

Effective brand development and protection goes far beyond trademark registration.  Intellectual property rights are just one element of a brand.  As a business operator, you must the elements of your brand that you have secured legal rights to are the same elements that resonate with the market.

Do you own your business name?

Great question. The answer lies somewhere between maybe and maybe not. If you are not careful, your business name may be a liability instead of an asset.

You registered your business name (trade name) in Ontario and paid $60 for five years. The Ontario government issued you a master business licence and a Business Identification Number.