Technology, Law, Baseball, Rock ‘n’ Roll, Etc.
LawLawLaw
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The opinions expressed in LawLawLaw do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Clock Tower Law Group, its employees, or the author. Unauthorized vehicles only.
Fighting City Hall
When I was in the Air Force, I often found myself fighting an uphill battle to do what was right. It was frustrating and exhausting. One day when my frustration must have been particularly evident, my boss said to me, “Erik, you can’t fight city hall.” To which I replied, “Sir, I’m going to fight city hall until the day I die.” Bad laws, bad companies, and bad people are everywhere. At Clock Tower Law Group, I enjoy helping good people, working at good companies, use good laws to compete fairly. As it says on our offerings page (clocktowerlaw.com/offerings/), “We are in the business of helping your company compete fairly in a marketplace where not everybody plays by the same rules. Patents can help protect your inventions. Trademarks can help keep your corporate identity secure.” The people in “city hall” aren’t always wrong, but when they are, you should fight. Maybe we need a new trademark: Fighting City Hall Since 1966.
Clock Tower Law Group’s clients range in size from a sole proprietor to a publicly traded company. Here’s what some of them are up to.
Kayak Merges With SideStep (2007-12-20)
Leading travel search engines join forces.
BzzAgent In Canada (2008-01-12)
BzzAgent has partnered with Canada’s largest media company, Rogers Media, to provide word-of-mouth (WOM) marketing in Canada.
Yahoo! Registers First Favicon Trademark (2008-01-15)
You know that little icon that appears next to the URL in your browser? The same little icon that appears in your bookmarks window, on browser tabs, and in web feeds? That little icon, the favicon (short for “FAVorite ICON”), can now be registered as a trademark with the USPTO. Yahoo! registered (what I believe to be) the first favicon trademark on 01/15/08.
Theikos Pitches Google Docs (2008-02-08)
Theikos has been using Google Apps for about a year with a globally dispersed team for delivering client projects, marketing content development, publishing corporate policies, and business planning.
Re-Register With National Do-Not-Call Registry (2007-10-29)
Registrations last only five years, and the National Do-Not-Call Registry was launched five years ago. Time to re-register.
Fight Back Against Domain Squatters (2007-11-13)
Your trademarks, your brands, and your names are being cybersquatted. Guaranteed. The brand wars are upon us.
Christian Louboutin Trademarks Red-Soled Shoes (2008-01-14)
Yes, you can trademark colors. You can also trademark numbers.
Lawyer Tries To Register CYBERLAW Trademark (2008-01-29)
And The TTABlog asks for letters of protest.
CYBERLAW has been used for law-related services at least as early as 05/17/93 (in a little book called The Legal List). See also the faqs.org archives. Silly lawyers.
Google Adds Patent Applications (2008-02-13)
Google is now the best destination for searching patents issued by and patent applications filed with the USPTO.
The Obama Brand (2008-02-13)
Fascinating reading about branding in politics. Not surprisingly, there is also an Obama trademark.
Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard Released (2007-10-26)
For all you Mac cats out there.
Wal-Mart Gives Up On DRM-Crippled Video Download Service (2007-12-28)
Launched in February 2007, killed in December 2007. Just in time for the new year. Surprise, surprise! Users still don’t like DRM.
Mac OS x 10.5.2 Leopard Released (2008-02-11)
For the finicky Mac cats who prefer to wait to have the bugs (mice?) ironed out.
World Series Music Video Highlights (2007-10-29)
The Red Sox swept through the Rockies with a tight 4-3 win in Game 4 to collect their second World Series trophy since 2004. Here are some rock ‘n’ roll highlights.
MLB Changes DRM, Fans Lose Purchased Videos (2007-11-07)
MLB sold DRM-crippled videos that required client computers to authenticate with an MLB server before videos could be played. Then MLB changed its DRM provider, and all “old” videos can no longer be watched. How to anger your fans in one shortsighted step.
Barry Bonds Indicted (2007-11-15)
A federal grand jury indicted Barry Bonds on perjury and obstruction of justice charges. Think he’ll play in 2008? Maybe Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens should form their own league.
Carrie Underwood Louisville Slugger Bat (2008-02-13)
Baseball, American Idol, marketing. What’s not to like?
AC/DC Purchases acdc.com Domain Name (2007-10-24)
Not a cybersquatting case, but interesting nonetheless.
Led Zeppelin Agrees To Sell On iTunes (2007-10-25)
A positive development for music fans.
Marching Band Does Video Games (2007-11-19)
How many of these video games do you recognize?
TiVo Offers Free Music Video Downloads (2007-12-05)
They still make music videos?
David Byrne Explains The Music Business (2007-12-19)
Talking Heads front man explains what’s right (and wrong) with the music business.
Change The Default Message On HP Printers (2007-10-19)
How to make your HP printer say “insert coin.”
MIT Sues Gehry For Negligent Design (2007-11-08)
MIT is suing architect Frank Gehry for negligence for the ugly and dangerous (falling ice etc.) $300 million Stata Center. And MIT wonders why I don’t donate money.
Erik Heels Announces Start-Up Heels.com Shoe Store (2007-11-23)
The story of how Heels.com morphed from a law firm website into a shoe store (with a shoe blog).
Writer’s Strike Begins (2007-11-16)
Explained in this “Not The Daily Show, With Some Writer” YouTube clip:
National Film Registry (2007-12-28)
The LOC added Dances With Wolves (among others) to the National Film Registry.
Writer’s Strike Ends (2008-02-13)
But if a tree falls in a forest, and nobody is watching TV, what will the ratings be? Or something like that.
