AdAge Magazine recently ranked the Nike swoosh symbol (a design mark in trademark lawyer speak) as the most admired logo among advertisers. This did not surprise me. But I was floored when I accompanied my 14 year old son to the Nike lab in NYC where hip employees literally handed him the coveted symbol (after you purchase a $99 pair of “blank” shoes) and allowed him to decorate the shoes and the … [Read more...]
Amazon Latest Online Marketplace to Push for Trademark Registration
August 24, 2017 by ·
Amy Sullivan Cahill, August 2017 Last month, Amazon began rolling out its newly revamped brand registry. The objective of the new registry is to encourage sellers who use the Amazon marketplace to register their own trademarks with the USPTO. Currently, only brands that own a federally registered trademark are eligible to join the Amazon registry. The trademark must be a “standard character … [Read more...]
Memes and Copyright Infringement – Do Internet Laughs Infringe?
July 25, 2017 by ·
Amy Sullivan Cahill, July 20, 2017 Memes have become ubiquitous in social media, flooding news feeds and time lines with jokes and pop culture references. The source material for many of these memes include the intellectual property of movie studios, artists, and photographers. How, then, do these memes not infringe on the rights of the intellectual property owners? The answer is not always … [Read more...]
Now That’s Offensive! In Wake of Tam Ruling, Applicants Rush to Offend
June 30, 2017 by ·
On June 19, 2017, Justice Samuel Alito delivered the Court’s opinion in Matal v. Tam, an 8-0 decision holding that the disparagement clause of the Lanham Act unconstitutionally limits free speech. Before the ink on the ruling was dry, several trademark applicants filed for marks that would have likely been found disparaging or offensive only hours before. Several of these applications contain … [Read more...]
Cahill IP, PLLC Named as a Top Intellectual Property Firm in Louisville
May 30, 2017 by ·
Following its first year in the Louisville legal community, Cahill IP, PLLC has ranked as Louisville’s 6th largest Intellectual Property Law Firm, and the 4th largest firm for federal trademark filings, in Louisville Business First’s annual ranking. While Cahill IP is a boutique firm, it ranked ahead of several of Louisville’s largest law firms for intellectual property practice. Cahill IP’s … [Read more...]
Becomes First Kentucky Firm to Qualify for National Association of Minority and Women Owned Law Firms (NAMWOLF) Membership
May 25, 2017 by ·
Media Contact: Christy Burke, Burke & Company Phone: 917-623-5096 Email: cburke@burke-company.com Cahill IP, PLLC Becomes First Kentucky Firm to Qualify for National Association of Minority and Women Owned Law Firms (NAMWOLF) Membership Louisville, KY - May 24, 2017 — Cahill IP, PLLC, an intellectual property (IP) law firm based in Louisville, is the first-ever Kentucky firm to … [Read more...]
Website Privacy Policies: Why Companies Should Avoid “Copy-and-Paste” and “Free Policy Generators”
May 1, 2017 by ·
Tucked away at the bottom of almost all websites is an important – and often overlooked – document about how the website will treat the personal information of the people who visit that website: the “Privacy Policy” or “Privacy Notice.” Certain industries, including banking, health care, and education, are subject to federal privacy requirements that may affect their requirements to post a notice … [Read more...]
The FTC Sends Further Warning Directed to the use of Instagram Influencers
April 26, 2017 by ·
There has been a lot of attention in April on the Federal Trade Commission’s warning letters directed to ninety separate advertisers identifying inadequate or omitted disclosures in “influencer advertising” on Instagram. As with any advertisement that incorporates a product “endorsement” advertisers must disclose material relationships between those providing the endorsement and the advertiser. … [Read more...]
States Get Involved in Online Advertising Regulation
April 14, 2017 by ·
Over the past two weeks, I have blogged about Online Behavioral Advertising (“OBA”), a practice that allows advertisers to target particular ads to Internet users based on perceived buying interests, and the attendant market for the collected marketing data - huge. There has been some public outcry following the recent decision by Congress to overturn the FCC’s Obama-era regulations to require … [Read more...]