{"id":11268,"date":"2011-03-22T14:00:48","date_gmt":"2011-03-22T18:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.iposgoode.ca\/?p=11268"},"modified":"2011-03-22T14:00:48","modified_gmt":"2011-03-22T18:00:48","slug":"the-arrow-principle-and-fictional-trademarks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/osgoode\/iposgoode\/2011\/03\/22\/the-arrow-principle-and-fictional-trademarks\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018The Arrow Principle\u2019 and Fictional Trademarks"},"content":{"rendered":"

Leslie Chong is a JD candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School. <\/em><\/p>\n

Benjamin Arrow\u2019s article<\/a> \u201cReal-Life Protection for Fictional Trademarks\u201d addresses the issues that arise when real-life companies attempt to exploit trademarks established in fictional worlds. Dubbed by commentators as \u201cThe Arrow Principle<\/a>\u201d, the author suggests that, as the use of the brand shifts<\/a> from the fictional world to the real world, the protection being sought is best afforded through copyright rather than trademark law.<\/p>\n

In his analysis, Arrow uses the Australian 'Duff Beer' trademark case<\/a> to support his argument that while these fictitious trademarks ought to be protectable in real-life, conceptual issues preclude damages for direct trademark infringement even if the infringement appears to be clear.<\/p>\n

A trademark is meant to<\/a> identify or distinguish the originating source of a product or service from those provided by its competitors. As such, when a real-world manufacturer put a \u2018Duff Beer<\/a>\u2019 label on his beer products (exactly as it had appeared on The Simpsons<\/a>), it is hard to conceptualize the injuries that were suffered by 20th Century Fox and The Simpsons\u2019 creator Matt Groening. \u2018Duff Beer\u2019 was not a product created in the real world and any infringement suffered by the plaintiffs could not amount to damages from loss of business, customer confusion or dilution of their mark in the public. Rather, as Arrow writes, \u201cBecause the expression of a parodic beer with an unflattering name is a minimally creative artistic expression fixed in the tangible medium of film, the breweries\u2019 appropriation of Fox\u2019s original expression might constitute a copyright injury\u201d.<\/p>\n

This, however, should not preclude the protection of fictional trademarks. Rather, proof of infringement must be demonstrated by showing that another party has usurped the goodwill associated with the fictional world in which the product at issue is found. As Arrow argues, the trademark in \u2018Duff Beer\u2019 exists not as it relates to alcoholic beverages as it appears on the show, but rather as it relates to the goodwill associated with The Simpsons as an entertainment franchise. In attaching \u2018Duff Beer\u2019 to their products, the breweries \u201creap the financial, reputation-related rewards associated with a desirable product\u201d \u2013 the product being The Simpsons franchise.<\/p>\n

Since trademark law has been used to protect superhero names<\/a> and their related products in the US, while copyright law has been used to protect these same rights in Canada<\/a>, it may well be that \u2018The Arrow Principle\u2019 will encourage an integration of both copyright and trademark principles for protecting fictional trademarks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Leslie Chong is a JD candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School. Benjamin Arrow\u2019s article \u201cReal-Life Protection for Fictional Trademarks\u201d addresses the issues that arise when real-life companies attempt to exploit trademarks established in fictional worlds. Dubbed by commentators as \u201cThe Arrow Principle\u201d, the author suggests that, as the use of the brand shifts from the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2140,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[62],"tags":[1004,56],"class_list":["post-11268","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-trademarks","tag-leslie-chong-ipilogue-editor","tag-trademarks"],"yoast_head":"\n\u2018The Arrow Principle\u2019 and Fictional Trademarks - IPOsgoode<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.yorku.ca\/osgoode\/iposgoode\/2011\/03\/22\/the-arrow-principle-and-fictional-trademarks\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u2018The Arrow Principle\u2019 and Fictional Trademarks - IPOsgoode\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Leslie Chong is a JD candidate at Osgoode Hall Law School. 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