May 8, 2008
V8 Soup: More of a Good Thing
It seems like V8 vegetable juice has been around forever, but it’s actually only been since 1933.
The origin of the name is the 8 different vegetables used to make the drink. Obvious, and yet brilliant.
- It’s descriptive: it tells consumers what this drink has that ordinary tomato juice doesn’t.
- It’s suggestive: the V8 engine powers sportscars and aircraft, making V8 an energy drink long before the likes of Red Bull came along.
- It’s short, simple, and easy to pronounce.
Now V8's parent company Campbell Soup is introducing 5 varieties of V8 soup. This seems like a logical step to me.
As a child, watching the “I coulda had a V8” commercials, I was always skeptical about the idea of drinking vegetable juice instead of fruit juice. Okay, I was skeptical about vegetables in general at that age. Vegetables in soup make sense, even to someone who tried to feed her peas and carrots to the dog under the table.
Admittedly, corn, peppers, squash, and broccoli are not among the ingredients of the original V8, which means “V9” might be a more accurate designation, but this is a solid branding choice for Campbell’s.
Technorati Tags: V8, V8 Juice, Campbell Soup, Vegetables, V8, V8 Soup, V9
Posted by Diane Prange at 2:28 PM
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Baskin-Robbins Loses Founder, But Great Product Naming Lives On
The passing of Irvine Robbins of Baskin-Robbins fame has me paying tribute to a man who really knew the value of eye catching product naming.
The name Baskin-Robbins was an amalgamation of the names of its founders, Irvine Robbins and Burton Baskin. The two men flipped a coin to see whose name came first, leading later generations to wonder if an ice cream chain called Robbins-Baskin would have done nearly as well.
Robbins discovered as a teenager that he could sell three times the ice cream if he changed the offering from “three scoops of ice cream, a slice of banana, two kinds of toppings” to “Super Banana Treat.” This was the start of a cornucopia of ice cream naming.
There have been over a thousand great flavors over the years like Valley Forge Crunch, for the 1976 Bicentennial, Lunar Cheesecake, to mark the moon landings, and Beatle Nut for Beatlemania.
After his retirement, Robbins named his boat “The 32nd Flavor.” Nice.
The Baskin-Robbins brand name itself is very powerful. The famous 31 flavors (one for every day of the month) grew from the original 21 flavors . The company, owned by Dunkin Brands is gearing up for a major US expansion with a new logo, graphics, web site, store design and of course some new product naming.
Baskin-Robbins was there with some really funky naming before the founders of Ben and Jerry’s were born and before Häagen-Dazs hit the big time (that name means nothing, really, and it invented Nordic consonance)
Basskin-Robbins’s great names for their flavors have always intrigued us and made a trip to the brightly colored stores special. This company, one of the first true franchises in the US and one of the pioneers of the high end ice cream market, probably owes its existence not only to its great ice cream, but also to the foresight of its founders, who understood that great flavors need great names.
RIP, Mr. Robbins.
Technorati Tags: Baskin Robbins, Ice Cream, 31 Flavors, Irvine Robbins, Burton Baskin, New Logo, Ben and Jerry's, Häagen-Dazs
Posted by William Lozito at 8:00 AM
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May 1, 2008
Why Did the FDA Object to Merck's Cordaptive Brand Name?
The news that Merck's new Cordaptive drug was unexpectedly torpedoed by the FDA has raised eyebrows across the industry, not least because the FDA
rejected the name as well, leading Derek at In the Pipeline to wonder what Merck will do with "all their promotional freebies."
This seems to be the least of Merck's problems this week.
There are a number of scientific and political reasons that probably doomed Cordaptive, but the FDA has yet to give a specific reason.
I have some thoughts on why Cordaptive may have been given a not-approvable letter.
Cordaptive is a cholesterol reducing drug from Merck that combines niacin, which can cause the unfavorable side affects of flushing and hot flashes, with laropiprant, which mitigates niacin’s side affects.
But Merck also markets Zocor, which also is designed to reduce cholesterol.
Additionally, there is Vytorin, a combination of Zocor and Zetia, which has proven to be no more effective than Zocor alone at reducing heart attaches or strokes.
Perhaps the FDA felt the "cor" prefix in Cordaptive suggested that the new product was an adaptation of Zocor. Or perhaps there were other reasons.
Merck changed the Cordaptive name to Tredaptive, which was approved by EMEA or the European Medicines Agency.
It will be interesting to see what the FDA decides regarding the Tredaptive name and the drug itself.
Technorati Tags: Merck, Cordaptive, Zocor, Tredaptive, Cholesterol, Drug Names, Vytorin, Facial Flushing, FDA
Posted by William Lozito at 8:22 AM
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April 30, 2008
What Do You Think of Starbucks' Product Naming?
One blogger has picked up on my curiosity about the brand naming planned for two new smoothie-like drinks coming from Starbucks. Donder and Blitzen have declared to the world that according to the Wall Street Journal there is a " Top Secret Baptism for New Starbucks' Drinks." in the offing.
This is big news not least because Starbucks is taking a beating lately. Starbucks' tepid performance has led to some gloating across the Internet, and some of it is pretty interesting.
ScLoHo's recent blog post says that the problem here is that Starbucks went too far down market, pinning the beginning of the end at Starbucks' decision to put carts in airports and malls, and to offer the frappuccino in supermarkets.
Could it be that Starbucks product naming has become too pedestrian in a world were we all know our ventis from our skinnys?
Even the employee blogs talk about customers becoming too familiar with the product naming and suggest what should be done about it (remeber that the customer is always
right).
I was interested to see that some Starbucks' employees refer to their company as "Sbux," a neat piece of insider naming.
There is no doubt that these two new names for the smoothie-like drinks have to be something different than smoothie, which is not a Sbux name. Starbucks has a grand tradition of interesting naming. Only they can offer us chocolate espresso truffles with a straight face.
I hope that these new products get the kind of naming they deserve.
Technorati Tags: Starbucks, Donder, Blitzen, New Smoothie, Coffee, Sbux, Ventis, Skinnys, Espresso
Posted by William Lozito at 9:08 AM
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April 28, 2008
Chi Chi’s Launches Linguistic Marketing Campaign
Hormel wants you to think of Chi Chi’s whenever you hear any word starting with “C,” so it’s only fitting that Chicago and Cincinnati are two of the first cities to benefit from this new C campaign.
According to BrandWeek “Consumers will see Chi Chi’s name associated with words like 'chicken,' 'cravings,' 'cooking' and 'celebration' in signage across grocery stores.” In total, they’ll have more than 2,000 words to choose from, but by no means will all of them be words Hormel wants associated with its product.
There are plenty of possibilites for wordplay on Chi Chi’s. More Words finds 430 English words starting with chi, including not just chicken but chips and chile.
And there are 1490 words containing chi, including achieve, achiote, and zucchini.
A mere 13 words end with chi, but one of them is mariachi.
Or you could look for rhymes, though perhaps peachy, screechy, and Nietzsche aren’t the best associations for fiesta food. (And the philosopher would never have recognized his name if you pronounced it to rhyme with Chi Chi’s, anyway.)
The real problem with the name Chi Chi’s, however, is the slang meaning of chichis. Though some people might associate them with fiestas, most of us don’t want to put salsa on them.
Technorati Tags: Hormel, Chi Chi, Salsa, Fiesta, Chips, Chicago , Cincinnati
Posted by William Lozito at 4:09 PM
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Does the World Need Another Ketchup Brand?
When you think Ketchup, what's the first brand that comes to mind? Heinz, of course.
However, I read with some amusement about the invention of Sir Kensington's Gourmet Scooping Ketchup by some bright college students who appear to have found a gap in the market for high-end tomato sauce as part of what looks like a pretty ambitious marketing project.
Not so fast, guys. You have a great idea here but Heinz has already caught on. Seems that ketchup lovers in the UK are getting a gourmet version of the ketchup we all grew up with.
Some people may think "gourmet ketchup" is a contradiction of terms, and although mustard may have a certain nobility about it, Ketchup is pretty darn egalitarian. The UK Daily Mail agrees.
The problem that Sir Kensington's would face if it was indeed being launched across the US is that Heinz has created a very, very flexible brand name for itself.
Although Laura Ries would be aghast, a quick flip through their web site shows that the company is already offering a low sugar ketchup, a light version, a low carb version, and an organic version, not to mention quite a few packaging options, including "Fridge Door Fit Ketchup." 
I wish Sir Kensington's all the best, but Heinz has figured out pretty much all of the niche variations out there, one of the chief problems of trying to take market share from a brand that is now fast on its feet.
Technorati Tags: Ketchup, Sir Kensington's Gourmet Scooping Ketchup, Heinz, Organic, Reduced Sugar, Condiments, Gourmet
Posted by William Lozito at 7:56 AM
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April 23, 2008
Is Barbie Contributing to her Own Brand Naming Dilution?
The news that Barbie has seen her sales decline by 12% this year is worrying for Mattel, but surely surprising to any parent who has had to keep track of his daughter’s ever expanding collection of ubiquitous toys.
Barbie is still the number one brand name when it comes to girls toys, but girls seem to be pulled in many directions nowadays thanks to video games, iPods and Bratz dolls, to name a few.
Despite the slump, Barbie has experienced a rebirth in the last few years thanks to a whole slew of new movies that see her as empowered, strong and independent. But what does occur to me, as well as to the dads I know who are in the marketing biz and feverishly buy these DVDs for their daughters, is how the Barbie name has become something of a sub-brand when it comes to their naming and branding.
There’s Barbie: The Princess and the Pauper; Barbie: The Twelve Dancing Princesses; Barbie: The Island Princess as well as Barbie: Mermaidia and Barbie: Fairytopia. Not to mention Barbie: Mariposa (think butterflies).
Here’s where it gets tricky. In very few of these movies does Barbie actually get called, Barbie. In Island Princess she’s Rosella, and in Princess and the Pauper the two twin princesses are Annaliese and Erika. In 12 Dancing Princesses she is Gennevieve, and so on.
The idea here is for the viewer to assume that Barbie is playing different parts in the movies, but it’s a stretch. Especially for a five year old, who might feel she has a few Barbies as well as a Mariposa doll.
It looks to me like these are movies given the Barbie seal of approval, rather than movies that feature a character named Barbie (who does in fact speak to the kids when the DVD menu comes up with a cheery “Hi, it’s me, Barbie” but, like some kind of higher power bestowing blessings upon the tale, does not show her face).
Phew. A guy needs a cheat sheet just to keep abreast of all the different brand naming going on here.
With all of these new products being poured on the market, could Barbie be facing brand naming dilution?
Add the thousands of Barbie clones that are out there, and it seems to be that Mattel is contributing to its own problems by creating what look to me like Barbie knock-offs rather than real Barbies.
How about a few movies that star a young woman named Barbie?
Technorati Tags: Barbie, Mattel, Toys, Dolls, Bratz, Brand Name Dilution, Sub-brand, Movies, DVDs
Posted by William Lozito at 7:34 AM
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April 18, 2008
A Product Code Name Worth Watching
Remember when tubular was a term of approbation? Okay, maybe not.
Nokia’s code name for its proposed “iPhone killer” is Tube.
The mobile giant isn’t big on giving its products real names; Symbian Freak speculates that the Tube is part of the S60 line. For the general public, however, Tube is easier to remember.
Engadget describes the Tube as “grossly codenamed," and I have to agree that tube is not an especially sexy word, and in one meaning, conveys entirely the wrong shape for a mobile phone.
But there is logic to the name. The dominant feature of the Nokia Tube, like the Apple iPhone, is its screen. It’s a phone for watching video on. Back in the day, everyone referred to the television as the tube.
These days, not even televisions have vacuum tubes in them any more, but language can be slow to catch up with technology. We still talk about rewinding digital audio and video files. Although it may be that a more typical alphanumeric Nokia designation will actually sound more modern.
Besides, the example of pace Microsoft, the real name is supposed to be cooler than the code name.
Technorati Tags: Nokia Tube, Apple iPhone, Apple, Inc, Nokia, Cell Phone, iPhone Killer, Microsoft
Posted by Diane Prange at 8:05 AM
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April 17, 2008
Pharmaceutical Product Naming – Not as Plain as the Nose on Your Face
The FDA just announced approval for Alcon’s new nasal spray, Patanase (generic name, olopatadine hydrochloride), expected to be on the market next month.
This prescription drug for allergic conditions will join the "Allergy Arms Race" alongside blockbusters like Flonase and Veramyst (generic name, fluticasone).
The best thing about this name is that it leaves no doubt as to where the drug should be applied. Like Flonase, the nasal root (nasus in Latin) is almost universally understood as nose.
The PATA prefix, however, is harder to explain.
Obviously, Alcon’s brand architecture includes several other allergy drugs that begin with the PATA prefix, but all of these are for ocular allergies, and each is affixed to a semantically distinct suffix
Pataday
Patanex
Patadur
Patalopt
Patanol
Patadiem
Pataset
Patavance
Pataxcel
And it’s anybody’s guess as to why Alcon connected with the PATA prefix to begin with. PATA has no intuitive meaning in the major European languages. If anything, it’s close to the Greek/Latin root for father (Pater) - yet it’s hard to believe that Father Nose, Father Day or Father Next is what Alcon had in mind.
Further, the root, PATA, in Sanskrit means a woven piece of cloth or even a tapestry/painting. But Painting Nose and Painting Next are semantically puzzling concepts for a drug as well.
In Zulu, the word PATA when repeated as PATA PATA is slang for sexual intercourse. This too is probably not Alcon’s intended meaning.
There is, however, a Sanskit word, PATTAN, which means port. So, potentially, Patanase means Nose Port.
Closer to home, there is a chance that PATA refers to the Anglo Norman word, Patch. As in Nose Repair. But this might be taking things too far, since in the early trials of Patanase, the incidence of epitaxis (bloody nose) was significantly high.
Technorati Tags: Alcon, Patanase, Flonase, Allergies, Veramyst, Pataday, FDA, Nose Spray
Posted by Diane Prange at 11:51 AM
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April 16, 2008
Pico: The Latest Word in Nano Product Naming
By now, everyone knows that nano means small. Though Apple’s iPod Nano is the most famous product to possess that name, there are 299 registered or trademarked Nano products in the same class, and more than 1200 overall.
In short, the Nano name is getting tired. If you want to name something small, you have to look elsewhere for inspiration.
That’s just what Super Talent has done in creating its Pico drives, which I first spotted on Pocket-lint.
While Engadget points out that at least five other companies have claimed to produce the world’s smallest USB flash drive, Pico is the most aptly named.
The other contenders are the Kingmax Super Stick, the iDisk II, the Pretec Bella, and Toshiba’s MK2001MTN hard drive, which doesn’t use flash memory.
In the International System of Units, pico denotes one trillionth, whereas nano is one billionth. So a pico-whatever is definitely smaller than a nano-whatever.
It wouldn’t surprise me, however, if Apple started using Pico drives to make its Nano even smaller.
Technorati Tags: Pico, Nano, Apple, Super Talent, USB Drives, Toshiba, Size, Hard Drive
Posted by Diane Prange at 9:56 AM
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April 15, 2008
Silver Seal is Product Naming Gold
I just read about Seal Shield's medical grade washable keyboard that uses exclusive waterproof technology and antimicrobial plastic. The alliterative Silver Seal name grabs your attention and promises a higher quality solution (in the silver) and protection (in the seal).
But there is more to name behind the product. Most consumers are not aware that silver has antimicrobial properties that kill germs and prevent the spread of disease.
Samsung introduced the idea of silver nano particles in household appliances back in 2003 (refrigerators, washing machines, and vacuum cleaners) and silver nano has been used to combat germs in socks, shampoo, and toothbrushes and it’s now being used to irradiate microbials on your keyboard, which by the way has “400 times more bacteria than your average toilet.”
The Silver Seal product name may be slightly ahead of its time, in terms of consumers fully appreciating the implications of silver, but it is poised to name a growing category of silver products developed to combat staph infections and other serious disease on your keyboard or in your washing machine.
The fact that it is dishwasher safe gets my vote too.
Technorati Tags: Silver Seal, Seal Shield, Silver Seal, Antimicrobial, Samsung, Silver Nano, Keyboard, Washing Machine
Posted by Diane Prange at 12:33 PM
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April 11, 2008
Can a Brand Name Get Any Worse Than Antipoleez?
A new breath mint called Antipoleez (get it?) says it eliminates odors on your breath. Perfect for when you've had a few too many, right?
The CEO of this outfit claims its not meant to fool police, but as Marni Soupcoff observes, "Funny thing about the product’s name, then, don’t you think?"
There's some idle chatting on the blogosphere about whether the product naming is "sending out a dangerous message." Seems to me that any product that even suggests you can get out of a DWI with the right breath mint is really pushing the boundaries.
These folks even offer a "night out pack" and a "frat pack" and some really dopey claims on their site.
Antipoleez deserves the same fate as the Cocaine energy drink, pulled from the shelves.
Technorati Tags: Antipoleez, Cocaine, Breath Mint, DWI, Antipoleez, Frat Pack, Night Out Pack
Posted by William Lozito at 9:25 AM
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April 9, 2008
Death Valley Chipotle Chip is Hot Product Naming
The new Death Valley Chipotle Kettle potato chip is interesting not least because it is a chip chosen by consumers as part of Kettle’s annual “People’s Choice Campaign.”
Even though it seems that some bloggers were more interested in the Orange Ginger Wasabi chip, the real winner here is the Death Valley History Association, which gets Kettle’s support for its Death Valley ROCKS program via an imaginative online competition.
I think this is an excellent way to get around the word “death” in a name. It also leverages the legendary heat of Death Valley to sell chips.
I had no idea the temperature got up to 120 degrees in Death Valley! As Paris Hilton would say, “That’s hot!”
Technorati Tags: Death Valley Chipotle Chip, Kettle, Orange Ginger Wasabi, Chips, People's Choice Campaign, Paris Hilton, Death Valley
Posted by William Lozito at 10:10 AM
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April 8, 2008
Dodge Journey Won't Stop Believing In Digital Brand Naming Promotion
The Dodge Journey is going to get a major online push today, with the introduction of the tagline, "If you can dream it, do it.”
A whopping 29% of Dodge's promotional media mix will be interactive, their “biggest digital outlay ever in terms of total dollars and percentage of the media buy” according to Ad Age.
The word Journey will play a pivotal role in the “Dodge Journey of a Lifetime” promotion and a series of videos for the NHL Playoffs entitled “Journey to the Cup.”
It’s a strong, evocative name, but it’s also hard for some us not to think of the cheesy 80s rock band “Journey,” which just announced its presence on Second Life. Their hit single “”Dream After Dream” comes to mind when you hear “If you can dream it, do it.”
And anyone who watched the end of the Sopranos remembers their song “Don’t Stop Believing,” which put the old time rockers back in the public consciousness.
Don’t laugh, the car is aimed at young singles and couples with small children. Plenty of the latter were subjected to those songs at at least one school dance.
Technorati Tags: Dodge, Journey, Rock Band, Don't Stop Belieiving, If you can dream it, do it, Journey the Band, Journey to the Cup, NHL
Posted by William Lozito at 7:54 AM
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April 7, 2008
New Labeling Laws Could Cause Havoc with Wine Brand Names
Proposed new labeling laws that do away with regional considerations are creating quite a problem for wine brand names.
For instance, one Swiss village is fighting for the right to use the name “Champagne” on its wines, despite the little known fact that the only real “Champagne” is made in the corresponding region in France, everything else is technically "sparkling wine."
Should the new laws go into effect, the significant equity behind regional names known even by the non-connoisseur, like “Champagne” or “Napa Valley” would be lost, as every brand of wine would have the right to label their "sparkling wine" as "Champagne." This would be catastrophic to the high end, traditional wines that we pay premium prices for.
Imagine trying to reposition a brand name like Moet or Dom Perignon versus a newer label by Lil Jon.”
Technorati Tags: Wine, Champagne, Dom Perignon, Alcohol, Wine Region, Lil John
Posted by William Lozito at 11:32 AM
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April 4, 2008
Steinway Lyngdorf Sweet Sounding Brand Naming
Here is an example of a completely new brand name that can immediately grab huge market share from established competitors. The Steinway Lyngdorf brand for high end audio products is just irresistible.
Many of us who do not even play the piano know and revere the Steinway name. Extending it to an audio system means that non-pianists can grab some of that Steinway allure.
The secret here is that both brand names are leaders in their fields and they both have tremendous recognition in the marketplace.
The combination has acted as a “catapult,” sending the brand name to the top 5 of luxury
audio brand names according to the Luxury Institute Survey.
I’d add that the name Lyngdorf sounds German, just like Steinway does, and a German brand name connotes precision and high fidelity to most consumers in the audio field.
Nordic European naming seems to attract the audiophile with really deep pockets. Just ask Bang & Olufsen, Bose, Harman Kardon, or Klipsch.
Technorati Tags: Steinway Lyngdorf, Audio, Stereo, Luxury, German, Bose, Bang & Olufson, Harmon Kardon, Klipsch, Piano
Posted by William Lozito at 8:05 AM
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April 2, 2008
Al Ries is Wrong About the Isuzu Brand Name
Al Ries wrote an interesting article about the demise of Isuzu. He says that one of the chief reasons that the brand died was because “it had a terrible name.”
Those of us who speak English prefer words or brand names that are perfectly balanced by vowel-consonant-vowel or consonant-vowel-consonant. We find these words and brand names easy to pronounce. Think Coca-Cola, Kodak, and Toyota.
Also think Isuzu. A great example of a brand name balanced by vowel-consonant-vowel.
Other Japanese auto brands are successful in the United States and are similar to Isuzu Brand.
- Subaru is pronounced similarly to Isuzu and the former has carved out a nice niche business in the U.S.
- And the Suzuki brand name is no easier or more difficult to pronounce than Isuzu and, as we know, Suzuki is successful in the U.S. with both motorcycles and autos.
Although I have the utmost respect for Mr. Ries, I have to respectfully disagree with him on this one.
If Isuzu failed in the U.S. it had as much to do with "terrible" marketing, or product mix, or timing.
How is the auto brand name Hyundai, which can be pronounced as either "Hun-day" or "Hun-die," (the former being the correct pronunciation) establishing itself as a brand to contend with in the U.S.?
It's not because of a "terrible" car brand name; it's because, I think, when Hyundai was introduced in the U.S. with its tagline, "Hyundai rhymes with Sunday," it educated U.S. consumers on how to pronounce the name.
Hyundai made a positive out of its brand name being pronounceable multiple ways, not unlike, Doyle Dane Bernbach (DDB) made a positive out of the unusual shape of the Volkswagen.
Sorry Al, Isuzu didn't fail in the U.S. because of its name, it failed for other reasons. Many other reasons.
Technorati Tags: Isuzu, Hyundai, Toyota, Suzuki, Doyle Dane Bernbach, Linguistics, Coca-Cola, Kodak, Volkswagen,
Posted by William Lozito at 8:00 AM
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March 31, 2008
Batter Blaster Blasts Organic Product Naming Backward
There are some examples off product naming that immediately cause a reaction, and The Batter Blaster is one of them. No, sorry, the ORGANIC Batter Blaster. This is essentially pancake batter in a pressurized can.
Don’t laugh.
The name itself fits in pretty well, with the kind of product name we are used to seeing with ready to eat foods, such as Reddi-wip and Easy Cheese. Highly descriptive.
But Fake Plastic Fish has a pretty good blog about why Organic Batter Blaster is “wrong on so many levels.” 
First of all, making whipped cream takes time (hence Reddi-wip), making melted cheese is messy and also time consuming (hence Easy Cheese), but making pancakes is quick and easy already and buying the stuff in a can to save yourself five minutes of mixing is just plain crazy.
More than that, trotting out the overused word organic to tack on the product name is really not in the spirit of organic living. Organic Picks argues that The Organic Batter Blaster and its resource wasting can has provided us with the moment where the “organic label has truly lost its meaning.”
On top of that, according to Dead On, “the sexual innuendo is off the charts here.” Ookee.com admonishes us “it’s not some kind of sex toy. Stop it.”
Technorati Tags: Pancakes, Batter Blaster, Organic, Reddi-wip, Easy Cheese, Brand Naming
Posted by William Lozito at 7:33 AM
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March 28, 2008
Pingg and the Evolution of Language
Once upon a time, a programmer needed to do some network troubleshooting.
He wrote a little program to tell him whether a given network host was accessible and how long it took to get a signal there and back. He named this program after the sonar pulses used to determine how far away an object was in space.
And thus “ping” was born.
Five years ago, most of us only encountered the term if we had to call our ISP’s tech support because we couldn’t get online. Then the tech support technician would ask us to open a command line and ping Google or some other site they absolutely knew was working.
But now the word “ping” has entered our everyday language, particularly among the BlackBerry-toting business types who use “offline” when they mean “in private” or “after this discussion is over.” (Real geeks know that what they want to say is “use the back-channel.”)
“Ping me” does not mean “try to reach my network host to see if it’s working.” It means “contact me” or “remind me.” Keith Ferrazzi uses “pinging” to mean keeping in frequent touch with your contacts, to remind them who you are and how helpful you can be to them.
Now there’s pingg, an online invitation service discovered this week by Springwise.
Despite the obligatory Web 2.0 spelling of the name, pingg shows us just how far this once-obscure term has penetrated into popular consciousness. It doesn’t take a geek to want to send out invitations online, and pingg provides every conceivable way to get your friends’ attention: e-mail, SMS text message, social networks, and even good old-fashioned snail mail.
Technorati Tags: Pingg, Blackberry, ISP, Sonar Pulses, Ping
Posted by Diane Prange at 8:02 AM
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March 27, 2008
Will Wal-Mart Ruling Start Parody Naming Trend?
In copyright law, parody counts as “fair use.” So too in trademark law, it would seem. Wal-Mart accused Georgia resident Charles Smith of infringing on its trademark by selling products emblazoned “Wal-ocaust” and “Wal-Qaeda.”
It’s no surprise that Wal-Mart doesn’t find these particular parodies amusing, but even if Smith’s sites didn’t feature prominent disclaimers, it’s unlikely anyone would find the names—or the logos, for that matter—“confusingly similar.” The average person is plenty smart enough to realize that none of the T-shirts, posters, or bumper stickers comes from Wal-Mart.
And that’s exactly what Judge Timothy Batten concluded, as WebProNews reported. Smith is free to go on using the names “Wal-ocaust” and “Wal-Qaeda” to sell products.
Of course, Smith’s aim is to make a political point, not establish a business. Any company that chooses its name as a parody of another company risks obsolescence once the subject of the parody is no longer a household name. Some brands might continue to flourish even if no one gets the joke anymore, but if Wal-Mart went out of business, there would be no market for Wal-ocaust T-shirts.
Which is probably just what Charles Smith would love to see happen.
Technorati Tags: Wal-Mart, Wal-ocaust, Wal-Qaeda, Trademark, Charles Smith, Judge Batten, Logos, T-Shirts, Bumper Stickers
Posted by William L