If it's in USA Today, it must be so. Today's edition carries this headline: "Flash Mobs pose challenge to police tactics." So today we have a legal lesson in brand management and trademark infringement.
"Flash mob" being used to describe urban crime sprees Organizers of lawful, social "flash mobs" disgusted by usage, not to mention, the crimes "Don't let your brand be hijacked for unintended purposes Like this article? Share it with others using this http://bit.ly/pxeDnylink:
Last week Lawyers.com published an article about the organized crime sprees happening this summer in some big cities, like Chicago and Philadelphia. We used the term "flash mob" to refer to these sprees – not because we coined the phrase, but because that's how MSM was describing these crimes. We also stated up front that flash mobs started as (and remains) a social attention-getting device, usually whimsical, sometimes with a social message.
We got called out on Twitter for having "gotten it wrong," using the term "lazily," etc. The criticism was blunt and sincere. Now, before a kindly flash mob descends on us, let's say we find it unfortunate what's happening to this brand. We hope proponents of the "original" flash mob can take it back.
There are lessons for business and brand owners. Exactly the same thing can happen to any valuable brand if the owner isnt is careful. Competitors who see value in your brand will try and rip it off for their benefit. You have to be vigilant-just like @ ImprovAZ, @ jmoriarty and @ rbcarter were-in enforcing your brand.
But it starts even before that. With new Flash Mob as an example (and by the way this is not intended as any criticism of the choice of "flash mob" to describe the phenomenon, if a choice in that sense was even made):
Choose your brand name carefully. For instance the "mob" sounds cool but has negative meaning well preceding this use: unruly mob, the violent mob, mobster, mob scene. No wonder people have latched onto Flash Mob as a handy name for crime sprees carried out by mobs and facilitated by social networks.Related: When choosing a name, you can't use something someone's already using, at least not in an infringing way. The infringement might not be obvious to you, but it would be to a seasoned trademark attorney. Related: Choose a strong name. Flash Mob would be considered a descriptive name and might not be as easy to defend as something arbitrary or fanciful or even suggestive.Defend that name: "typewriter" elevator "," "Xerox" and "Kleenex" are all brand names that became more or less synonymous with the generic product. While that shows how successful the products (and brands) were, you don't want your brand to suffer by the dilution.Defend that name from infringement: you don't want anyone using your brand to describe something else, least of all things a criminal act.Defend that name from infringement: "don't let anyone use a similar name that may cause consumer confusion (and allow the free rider to poach your brand's fame). For example, you'd want to stop someone from using the name "Flesh Mob" to brand orgies organized through social networks.Register your brand with state authorities and the federal Patent and Trademark Office. You acquire legal rights in a brand just by using it lawfully. Your rights, and especially your remedies for violations of those rights, are enhanced by registration.Keep that cease and desist letter handy, and use it. If the infringement doesnt stop, call in the lawyers.Brands are complex bundles of valuable real and intellectual property rights. The law about brands is complicated and nuanced. Don't fritter away your chance at something big by keeping in the dark.
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