Trademarks

738 Views 4 Replies 4 Participants Last post by kimura-mma, May 18, 2014

Inspired Buffalo

Discussion Starter · May 18, 2014

We have had a bunch of customers come to us lately with designs that feature characters from Warner Bros.
Latest was Marvin the Martian.

We turned it down. The customer was not happy. He says that anybody who is online will print these. He had several quotes but said he wanted to give the business to a local company.

We know several local printers who have no problem printing NFL logos, NBA logos, etc,etc. They have been doing it for years without permission.

How do people get away with this? Are we wrong? We have lost business because we do not want to print anything that we do not own or know who designed it or have written permission to do so by who owns it.

The laws are so vague in this area. It seems like it is impossible to enforce these types of things.

Now a day it seems anybody who see's something on the computer feels that it is ok to print. Just because they can download it.

I don't want to be looking over my shoulder everyday.

Save

1 - 5 of 5 Posts

KristineH

· #2 · May 18, 2014

We have so many people come in and want Disney and Marvel characters. We tell them unless they can show us permission, we won't print it because it's illegal - they won't get in trouble, we will.
We had people get mad at us, but now we tell people we have something they'll need to sign that releases us from all liability and that they will take blame for any legal action, and pay any and all penalties, they understand.

Save

proworlded

· #3 · May 18, 2014

I believe that unless you have written permission direct from the licensor you will be still be liable.

Save

KristineH

· #4 · May 18, 2014

That correct, but when you tell them that they'll take on the full responsibility, they're more likely I understand.

Save

kimura-mma

· #5 · May 18, 2014

Inspired Buffalo said:
The laws are so vague in this area. It seems like it is impossible to enforce these types of things.

The laws really aren't that vague. It is trademark infringement to reproduce a logo without permission.

Permission is typically granted in the form of a licensing agreement. An NFL apparel license costs $100,000 in yearly fees plus royalties. So if a customer is licensed, they will definitely have legit proof that they are a licensee.

Without a license, they are trying to produce unlicensed goods and you should steer clear.

Inspired Buffalo said:
We know several local printers who have no problem printing NFL logos, NBA logos, etc,etc. They have been doing it for years without permission.

How do people get away with this? Are we wrong?

Those printers are simply taking the risk. Perhaps they believe they can pass the responsibility onto the customer. But that's not the case. Both the customer and printer are liable for trademark infringement.

They may be getting away with it for now. But that's because they are under the radar. If the day ever comes where they get caught, it could be potentially damaging to their business.

You are smart for turning down the business. It's not worth it.

Inspired Buffalo said:
The customer was not happy. He says that anybody who is online will print these. He had several quotes but said he wanted to give the business to a local company.

Online printers accept most artwork in real time. But once they realize the art infringes on a major licensed property, there's a good chance they will reject it and require proper permission before they are willing to print it.

Inspired Buffalo said:
Now a day it seems anybody who see's something on the computer feels that it is ok to print. Just because they can download it.

I don't want to be looking over my shoulder everyday.

Agreed. Many people just aren't educated on IP laws. Some don't realize the laws exist. Others know the laws exist but convince themselves they are somehow right or simply believe they won't get caught. Again, you are smart for turning down those jobs.

See less See more

Save

1 - 5 of 5 Posts

This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.

Top Contributors this Month