Facebook Throws the Book at Teachbook

by Matthew Rubin on September 3, 2010

You may never think about the use of the word “book” in quite the same way now that social networking giant, Facebook, has filed a trademark infringement suit against start-up Teachbook, which is set to debut this fall.

Teachbook, “an online community for teachers,” promises features Facebook users may be familiar with like profiles and communication tools including chat, discussion groups and resource sharing. Facebook, in court documents, claims trademark infringement, unfair competition and trademark dilution and wants profits, damages and the Teachbook domain name transferred over to them.

Wired reported Teachbook’s response: “It’s a David and Goliath situation,” said Greg Shrader, the managing partner of the Northbrook, Illinois-base Teachbook, which has yet to launch. ”They’re throwing bombs at a mosquito. They believe we’re going to roll over and in some respect they get to own the term ‘book.’”

Apparently Facebook isn’t focusing its trademark sights solely on social networking companies. The company recently demanded that a travel site rename itself from Placebook. And TechCrunch reported that Facebook has filed a trademark application for FACE—check out a screenshot of the class 38 filing from Corsearch® Advantage™:


There are still some outliers, like Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s former Harvard classmate, Aaron Greenspan. Greenspan already owns a trademark for FACECASH which is being used as a mobile app. Fresh off of a battle with Zuckerberg over other Facebook trademarks last year, Greenspan has filed an extension with the TTAB for the purposes of opposition of the FACE mark.

You know what they say: “A good book has no ending”… so stay tuned.

Share and Enjoy:
  • Print
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • Google Bookmarks
  • email
  • StumbleUpon
  • Twitter

{ 0 comments }

What’s a “Millennial,” you ask? They’re the generation after Generation X; born mostly between the late 1970s to the early 2000s. Some people call them Generation Y or Echo Boomers.

Why are we talking about them on Trademarks + Brands? Well, recent research shows that Millenials don’t feel particularly strongly about … anything. Market research firm, CivicScience, says Millennials don’t really hate anything, they barely dislike anything and they don’t particularly love anything either. The company regularly polls over 600,000 Millennials about youth-marketed brands with questions like: How much do you like brand X? or How cool is brand Y?

The findings are fascinating—you can read more about them on this Millenial Index post. There’s almost NO contrast among brands—not much love—and not much hate. What effect does this have on brand strategies today? And how will brands adapt to the next generation, Generation Z, which brings its own set of new challenges? Zs, who do most of their socializing online, have been dubbed “The New Silent Generation” by Strauss and Howe’s Generations.

Should you consider adjusting your brand strategy?

Share and Enjoy:
  • Print
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • Google Bookmarks
  • email
  • StumbleUpon
  • Twitter

{ 0 comments }

Who’s the (Cake) Boss?

August 30, 2010

Buddy Valastro of Carlo’s Bakery in Hoboken, NJ, is famous for making cakes in challenging and unusual shapes, including fire trucks and treasure chests. Now, the star of TLC’s “Cake Boss” may have to change his nickname. That’s because Masters Software, Inc., has been selling business management software for bakers called “CakeBoss” since 2007 — [...]

Share and Enjoy:
  • Print
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • Google Bookmarks
  • email
  • StumbleUpon
  • Twitter
Read the full article →

Attention Trademark Professionals: World Trademark Review Survey on gTLD Branding Strategies

August 26, 2010

With vanity gTLDs almost certain to launch, brand owners and marketing managers find themselves faced with new marketing challenges. All trademark professionals should consider participating in the World Trademark Review’s survey on gTLD marketing strategy. Open not only to WTR subscribers, the survey tests the levels of awareness and understanding of this development and will [...]

Share and Enjoy:
  • Print
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • Google Bookmarks
  • email
  • StumbleUpon
  • Twitter
Read the full article →

The Knock-on Effect of Knockoffs

August 24, 2010

We’ve written about the popularity of counterfeit products but we hadn’t given much thought to the consumers that buy them until coming across a study that showed that the people who buy knockoffs are actually more likely to display deceptive behavior.
The study, “The Counterfeit Self: The Deceptive Costs of Faking It,” asked 276 women to [...]

Share and Enjoy:
  • Print
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • Google Bookmarks
  • email
  • StumbleUpon
  • Twitter
Read the full article →

Who Owns the “Sky” in “Skype”?

August 24, 2010

Skype’s recent IPO filing revealed a legal battle with BSkyB over the rights to use “Sky” in its company name. Since both companies operate in telecommunications, could they be considered competitors? Apparently not in Switzerland, Turkey or Brazil, where Skype won the right to use its name. The Trade Marks and Designs Registration Office of [...]

Share and Enjoy:
  • Print
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • Google Bookmarks
  • email
  • StumbleUpon
  • Twitter
Read the full article →

Blogs We Read

August 24, 2010

We like to point to other blogs that we follow on a regular basis that are worth checking out. Here’s a relatively new one on the scene with a green perspective:
Sustainable Marks: Protecting the Ideas that Protect the Earth
The blog features a weekly roundup of green marks and an author who drives—what else?—a hybrid.

Share and Enjoy:

Share and Enjoy:
  • Print
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • Google Bookmarks
  • email
  • StumbleUpon
  • Twitter
Read the full article →

Medical Marijuana Trademark Update

August 19, 2010

Since this blog’s last post on medical marijuana trademarks, the applications that flooded the USPTO have yet to be rejected despite the category for medicinal marijuana being removed.
There are still a total of 150 pending applications and the state of Colorado leads the pack as most active for the now defunct category. Among the 20 [...]

Share and Enjoy:
  • Print
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • Google Bookmarks
  • email
  • StumbleUpon
  • Twitter
Read the full article →

Failed Trademark Attempt by Jersey Shore’s Snooki; Additional Filings Still Pending

August 17, 2010

After news hit the Internet of MTV’s “Jersey Shore” cast member Nicole Polizzi’s failed attempt to register her nickname, “Snooki,” in Class 16 (books), Trademarks + Brands did some research of its own and found 3 additional trademark applications filed on behalf of Polizzi:
*Snook A-Like – classes 9 (sunglasses and cell phone accessories) and [...]

Share and Enjoy:
  • Print
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • Google Bookmarks
  • email
  • StumbleUpon
  • Twitter
Read the full article →

What Happens in Vegas, Ends Up on Trademarks and Brands

August 16, 2010

A recent New York Times article regarding the adversity Columbus, Ohio is facing to promote tourism got us thinking about trademarked city slogans.
Here’s Columbus—a young, intelligent, open-minded city known for having the largest county fair and the largest gay pride parade—looking for a slogan that will “define the city” without the help of an advertising [...]

Share and Enjoy:
  • Print
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • Google Bookmarks
  • email
  • StumbleUpon
  • Twitter
Read the full article →