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Wal-Mart Trying to Trademark the Smiley Face

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the :)-prior-art dept.

Ellis D. Tripp writes to tell us BBC News is reporting that mega-retailer, Wal-Mart, is now fighting it out with a man who claims to have invented the 'smiley face' logo, and has been marketing it since the '70s. From the article: "Until now the smiley face had been considered in the public domain in the US, and therefore free for anyone to use. Wal-Mart spokesman John Simley told the Los Angeles Times that it had not moved to register the trademark until Mr Loufrani had threatened to do so."

2 of 317 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Two issues here by Stinky+Cheese+Man · · Score: 5, Informative
    They are not copyrighting the smiley - they are trademarking it. These are very different things.

    SCM

  2. Re:I thought it was invented by by lbmouse · · Score: 5, Informative

    This is a Trademark, not a patent or copyright fight. The brewers of Bass Ale didn't invent the word Bass, they just trademarked it in conjunction with their triangle logo. Trademark law is supposed to help the consumers by eliminating confusion in the market place.

    IANAIPL but my ex-wife is and she is always talking about how strange and vague trademark law can be. Her firm help trademark the shape of the Dean's Milk Chugs bottles. They used the Coca-Cola bottle product packaging trademark as the basis for their argument. So saying that consumers might be confused in the market place by a well known smiley face is not that odd or unethical.