“Oh (sh)It.” eBay enforces its mark.
I knew I should have gone with “Pronoun” instead of “Adverb” because pronouns are where It’s at.
Ebay is making a big trademark protection push today, lawsuits-a-flying, building on groundwork laid back in March with the application for trademark on the phrases “You Can Get It On eBay” and “You Can Sell It On eBay,” in which the word “it” is in three colors. Previous lawsuits centered on protection of their name, with “BidBay,” “BrickBay,” and “PerfumeBay” all feeling the sting of the auction giant’s lash. This next round of suits promises to literally take the color out of the blandest of words.
EBay’s latest trademark battle is rooted in how important marketing and branding is for a large swath of companies that mostly exist only on the Internet. Sometimes, a good slogan or catchy ad theme is key to standing out among a crowded field of competitors. (Dow Jones Newswire via Morningstar)
But don’t tell the New Marketers. They think It’s all about social blew-point-oh.
Whoops. I just got sued.
Email Article Monday, September 18th, 2006 at 10:10pm Mack Simpson
Filed under: Ad Jungle | add this post to del.icio.us
Technorati Tags: Advertising, eBay, Trademark, Lawsuit
5 Comments Add your own
1. makethelogobigger | September 19th, 2006 at 2:18 am
Not trying to defend ebay, but in addition to trademark schtuff, it’s also happening a lot with search/SEO too. Brands in the same category as category leaders will buy search words similar to the leader’s url or iterations thereof, just in case Joe consumer types in the wrong word by accident.
Then their url shows up in the results along with the leader’s. It also siphons search traffic from them as well.
The loser brand will also create landing pages using the same name with something added on, like ebayselling.net. Then, people mistake it for the real deal. Only thing the leader can do is a C&D letter from their lawyers.
2. Mack Simpson | September 19th, 2006 at 8:53 am
Don’t get me wrong, Bill, I wasn’t taking eBay to task; I think brands absolutely should protect themselves against trademark encroachment– especially when it’s protecting themselves against some of the ultra-slimy SEO/SEM tactics you mention.
3. Javier Osorio | September 19th, 2006 at 3:17 pm
Amigo Mack, maybe you won’t remember me. I used to work at Dieste a few years ago. Actually I think you were my replacement when I left the agency. I remember your strange habit of including the word “monkey” in every single script you wrote. Now I know why. Anyway, first of all, great blog! I reallly like the plugin you’re using to display photos in your posts. Do you know the name and where I can get it? Thanks.
4. Mack Simpson | September 19th, 2006 at 3:54 pm
¿Qué tal, Javier? Which photo display are you talking about– the photoblog over on the sidebar or the fade-up/fade-out script I use to display larger versions?
The photoblog is its own software, not a plugin, for which I’ve scripted a call that displays a random image (and a link to the photoblog itself) here on Adverb. The software is called “FolderBlog.”
The fade-up/fade-out feature is a self-modified version of the “Lightbox” plugin for Wordpress written in AJAX/Javascript.
Thanks for the nod; glad to see you around.
5. Javier Osorio | September 20th, 2006 at 10:24 am
I was talking about the “lightbox” feature. Thanks for the info, I’ll install it in my blog this week. Take care, get well. Say hello to all the Dieste gang. Abrazo.
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