Brand owners are likely to be unimpressed by Google’s latest update to its AdWords program, which gives purchasers of third party trademarks increased prominence for their ads. The change, which is already in operation, means “organic” search results will be pushed further out of view by sponsored ads, whose format now looks like some categories [...]
Posts Tagged ‘trademarks’
Google Increases Ad Prominence For Sellers Using Third Party Trademarks
September 6th, 2011 
Gareth Dickson 
Posted in North America, social media, trademarks, vront 
Tags: AdWords, Google, Internet, trade marks, trademarks 
No Comments »LA Court – Madonna’s Not The Only Material Girl
September 2nd, 2011 Gareth Dickson Women’s Wear Daily today reports on a matter that was covered on this blawg last August (Madonna’s Macy’s Material Met By Mark Lawsuit), namely an attempt by an LA company to put a stop to Madonna and Macy’s ‘Material Girl’ clothing line. The Plaintiff, L.A. Triumph, Inc, argues that it has the prior rights to the [...]
New York Becomes Latest Court To Rule Against Use of Trademarks in AdWords
August 27th, 2011 Gareth Dickson A District Court in New York has become the latest to find that using a competitor’s trademark in Google’s AdWords program can be trademark infringement. District Judge Roslynn R. Mauskopf found that the Defendants’ selection of “PILLOW PETS” and similar marks as a trigger for Google Ads is likely an infringement of the Plaintiff’s registered trademarks [...]
Posted in North America, social media, trademarks, vront Tags: AdWords, copyright, false advertising, Google, Internet, New York, second circuit, trade marks, trademarks, US No Comments »
Judge-Led Charge Against American Fashion Designers Continues
August 11th, 2011 Gareth Dickson Fashion designers, as a class, should gain only limited IP protection, according to Judge Victor Marrero of the Southern District of New York. Giving judgment in Christian Louboutin SA et al v. Yves Saint Laurent America, Inc et al., 1:11-cv-2381 (NYSD August 10, 2011), Judge Marrero acknowledged that the world famous Louboutin house has acquired [...]
Posted in North America, trademarks, vront Tags: copyright, New York, second circuit, trade marks, trademarks, US No Comments »
New Microsoft ad strategy more aggressive than Google’s?
August 5th, 2011 Gareth Dickson Microsoft has recently tested a new system of advertising whereby ads are not placed on top of the organic search results, nor to the side, nor on a colored background, but actually within the list of organic results. Is this a smart move? Will Microsoft find itself on the end of a (meritorious) lawsuit for [...]
Posted in North America, social media, trademarks, UK and Europe, vront Tags: AdSense, AdWords, ECJ, Europe, Google, Internet, trade marks, trademarks, UK, unfair business practices 1 Comment »
Google AdWords Takes A Hit: E-Commerce Safe Harbour MIA
July 31st, 2011 Gareth Dickson While the Wall Street Journal (initially, at any rate) declared outright victory for Google’s AdWords service after the Court of Justice of the European Union (“ECJ” or “CJEU”) ruled that the sale of keywords to advertisers did not constitute “use” of those keywords within the meaning of the Trade Marks Directive (89/104/EEC), most of us [...]
Posted in social media, trademarks, UK and Europe, vront Tags: AdWords, ECJ, Europe, false advertising, Google, Internet, trade marks, trademarks, unfair business practices 2 Comments »
POTUS candidate abandon briefs and suit: reverts to being Naked
April 22nd, 2011 Gareth Dickson If I told you that Robert Burck had had a haircut, you probably wouldn’t know what I was talking about. But if I told you that while in Times Square last week I noticed that the Naked Cowboy is back performing with a new look, you might even remember the lawsuit he filed last year [...]
California Court finds AdWord ad creates likelihood of confusion
February 22nd, 2011 Gareth Dickson In his January 25, 2011 decision in the Central District of California, District Court Judge George H. King held that the targeted use of a third party’s trademark in a Google AdWord advertising campaign can constitute trademark infringement and can also leave advertisers open to an award of enhanced damages, attorneys fees and costs. (Binder [...]
Posted in North America, social media, trademarks, vront Tags: AdWords, damages, false advertising, Google, Internet, trade marks, trademarks, US 1 Comment »What happened at the BBC? Pt I
January 15th, 2011 Gareth Dickson When I was growing up, the BBC provided journalism at its very best. The anchors spoke so clearly, and with such grammatical precision, that “BBC English” became a standard in its own right. If you wanted to understand something in the news, the BBC was the most accurate and unbiased report you could find. The [...]
Posted in copyright, North America, trademarks, UK and Europe Tags: Apple, trade marks, trademarks, US No Comments »Czech, mate.
January 7th, 2011 Gareth Dickson Ever thought of applying for an intellectual property right via a Czech agency? Probably not, if you’re reading this, but in case you do then you might want to read the IPKat’s comments on WIPD, an organization whose name and logo closely resemble those of WIPO, which in addition to being a well respected organization [...]
Posted in copyright, patents, trademarks, UK and Europe Tags: domain names, Europe, trade marks, trademarks, unfair business practices No Comments »