Small Artist Group Gets Nastygram from Intel 45
SuperBanana writes "According to a story in the Boston Globe, Intel feels a MA artist co-op gallery's name is "too similar to Intel's advertising slogan." The gallery name: "The Art Inside Gallery". Intel has said it will pay for the costs of the name change, and the artists are debating the hassle and expense of getting a lawyer, but 16 artists don't stand much of a chance against one of the world's largest legal departments. This is not the first time Intel has threatened legal action over trademarks. Maybe the EFF's Chilling Effects Clearinghouse can help. Is anyone else getting tired of the bully called 'corporate America'?"
additional comments (Score:5, Informative)
I just wanted to comment here on my submission, since I try to keep 'em as short/to the point as possible(by the way, apologies for the earlier goofs in my story submissions, doh! Hopefully got this one right!)
As I said in the submission, this isn't the first time Intel has gone after people, though some of the cited examples are better than others; for example, there's the "FACE" guy, who was basically harassing 27,000 Intel employees via email...but on the other hand, there's cases like Intel going after a Yoga group. There were a few cases I didn't list, like the case against a company making "Yoda Inside" stickers. That's a clear spoof, but a better case than a bunch of artists with a little art gallery.
IANAL, but I could swear one of the key issues in trademark cases is whether a)there will be damage to the trademark holder from b)confusion with the trademark holder. Ie, someone thinks I'm Intel and I sell computers, and Intel looses money off that(or it's reasonably forseeable that they will.)
The FACE site in particular burns me- for example, they harp on Intel employee suicides; FACE sees conspiracies everywhere, it seems, and they take a perfectly acceptable letter from management to employees(listing places employees can get help, and encouraging employees to think about each other) and talk nothing but trash about it. About the only thing that's truly interesting(and relevant to my submission) on their site is their compiled list of all the trademarks Intel has registered...which, unfortunately, I can't find now for the life of me. It had some amusing stuff, like trademark registrations in the cooking/household appliance sector, leather goods, etc...really weird stuff.
Still, I think it all boils down to the all-too-prevalent attitude among corporate legal departments- mainly, if you let one little thing through, it sets you up for getting whammed by a bigger fish who points to the little case, and says "Why didn't you fight THEM? Hmm?"
My motivation for submitting this story was that I wanted to get this as much publicity as possible- and maybe, if the negative PR outweighs the perceived benefit of "smacking down every case for the sake of precidence", Intel will back down and leave 'em alone. Let's make some fuss, spread the word...
Re:additional comments (Score:3, Interesting)
I'm typing this from a computer with an Antec case ($179, 400W power supply, 3 fans in addition to PS fan, drive bay fans, etc.), which has a large "Antec Outside" sticker/button on the front.
Why isn't Intel going after Antec?
harassing??? (Score:2)
I don't consider 4 emails harassment.
Re:harassing??? (Score:1)
108,000? (Score:2)
I differ with Ken. He is of the belief that if it is on the internet, you can just send email to it -- same as spammers. I believe that his acts are protected under the NLRB, DOL, and anti-discrimination laws, and encouraged by section 8 of the EEOC compliance guide.
In any case, it is not commercial.
Re:silly (Score:1)
Intel would foot the bill? (Score:3, Funny)
Or the "AMD Will Kick The Ass Of That Other Company With All The Butthead Lawyers" Gallery.
"our hands are tied" (Score:1, Insightful)
???
That way they could 1) protect their mark in the future and 2) pull their heads out from deep within their asses.
Or maybe they actually *DO* want to own every use of the "*** INSIDE" phrase. In that case, they suck monkey bizzalls, and
Re:"our hands are tied" (Score:5, Insightful)
This seems like a good idea- it may at least partially address the "gotta pound every nail" argument toted by so many lawyers to justify themselves(I do honestly believe that many execs don't LIKE following the legal advice given to them, but do so only because they're not given any other options save "ignore it") Better yet, the lawyers still get to justify themselves by drawing up the contract etc.
Shouldn't be $50 though- if the company that owns the trademark wants to make a fuss to the Little Guy, the burden should be on the trademark holder as much as possible- make it $1(a typical symbolic amount), and for everyone's trouble, buy the Little Guys lunch, give them a little money for a trust, donate a work of art, etc...you get the idea.
Why not celebrate clever usage of your company's name(hey, it's publicity after all, right?) that has no clear danger to you, while still covering your ass? Gotta be a way to do both.
Ok, it's bullying, but.... (Score:4, Interesting)
Of course they excuse they give is a pile of crap.
While this is true, the only way it could damage them is if this art co-op became so pervasive that AMD could say "AMD Inside" and claim that since the artists use it non-infringingly that they somehow have the right. This would be weak.
If Intel really wanted to play nice with these people, and actually believed they were at risk, they could licenses the dubious "thing Inside" trademark to them for a dollar a year for artistic use only. This would satisfactorily establish the precedent of ownership, and that of licensing. When charging AMD for the use of it they could simply claim that the rates are a little steeper for direct competitors.
I'm not a lawyer but it seems to me that they itch to be bullies and their P.R. department has encouraged them to take what is probably a cheaper solution.
The one hopeful note I hear in this is that our whining works. If they didn't know there'd be a serious blacklash for just crushing these people under mounds of paperwork, the P.R. department's input probably wouldn't have been so visible.
I don't know... (Score:4, Funny)
I'm good for another few years, thanks. The trick is not to think about it.
Re:I don't know... (Score:2)
Largest legal departments??? (Score:4, Informative)
But don't let the facts get in the way of your ranting.
Do your part. (Score:5, Funny)
There are lots of places where you can do it. Trashcans, water closets, a dead and rotting goat body, the possibilities are endless.
Re:Do your part. (Score:2)
I've been in the habit of applying the 'designed for windows' stickers onto garbage cans for a few years now. Not sure if any co-workers think it through, but I still get a kick out of it.
Re:Do your part. (Score:1)
How about my sending you a "Stop Committing Sensless Acts of Stupidity" sticker - I'll promise to make it small enough to place on your forehead so you can see it every morning you wake-up and look in the mirror.
"All I'm offering is the truth - nothing more"
ScottKin
Re:Do your part. (Score:1)
Maybe photoshop an "Intel Inside" sticker onto one of the goatse man's ass-cheeks?
T&K.
Futurepower Comment Inside [trademark] (Score:5, Informative)
My impression is that Intel's position is utterly without merit. Could Coca-Cola ever have prevented Pepsi-cola from using the term -cola? No.
Over a period of years, I have developed the impression that it is only the microprocessor department of Intel that is skillful. The other departments seem to me mostly good at avoiding work.
I've seen numerous instances of poor marketing from Intel. Intel marketing ran the Intel consumer division into the ground, for example, in my opinion. The software for an Intel video camera for connection to a PC was missing key features, so that numerous buyers took them back to the store. That's just one of many examples. After years of amazing lack of perception such as this, Intel closed its consumer division.
I called and talked to one Intel employee and showed him how Intel was marketing a PC Card networking product in a misleading way. The card would not work with many of the most popular laptops, but that information was at a URL mentioned in a package insert available only after the customer had opened the box. The employee said, "We are updating our web site soon." One year later, I called and happened to get the same employee. I had his name in my notes. I mentioned the same problem, but didn't tell him I had seen it before. He said, "We are updating our web site soon."
My overall impression is that Intel's marketing department, and most departments outside of the processor and processor support design departments, are major slackers. They have often given me many, many excuses why things can't be done in a more efficient way.
For example, Intel's motherboards are sold at Fry's and many other retail stores. However, several Intel employees and I have proven that it is not possible to get the motherboard part number from any of the publicly accessible web sites. It is possible to get close, such as 815EEA2 motherboard (an old one that I remember), but it is not possible to get the trailing digits that define what options are on the motherboard from a publicly available Intel web page. I have often asked why this information must be secret. No answer. Simply no one wants to be responsible.
I've seen many such examples of Intel's marketing that I consider utterly foolish. Intel employees often use words or acronyms in their conversations with me that have been invented inside Intel. For example, "IPD". Intel employees often talk like I should know how Intel is organized.
I haven't spent much time considering the Itanium processor. However, whether or not it is a good processor, the fact that people routinely call it the "Itanic", without providing any explanation, shows that Intel's marketing is poor.
It's sad, really. Intel seems to be just one of the many U.S. companies that is self-destructive. I buy Intel motherboards because I think there is less potential for problems when the motherboards come from the company that made the processors. However, while working with Intel products I have often been in the uncomfortable position of seeming to be more positive about Intel than Intel is about itself.
As you may have noticed in the subject line, my trademark is on this comment. "Futurepower Comment Inside" is my trademark. It does not infringe on Intel's trademark, since no one can possibly confuse a name for a comment with a name for a microprocessor. One reason they cannot confuse it is that my trademark says "comment".
If you are ever at an outdoor party, don't say, "There are food and soft drinks inside", because that infringes Intel's trademark. If you have a theatre in a hot climate during the summer, don't use your sign that says, "Air conditioning inside", because Intel owns anything that ends with the word "inside".
IPD? (Score:1)
Intel employees often use words or acronyms in their conversations with me that have been invented inside Intel. For example, "IPD".
I didn't know Intel worked in virtual reality optics. Last time I checked (that is, about the time Nintendo tried and failed to sell Virtual Boy tabletop game consoles), "IPD" referred to "intra-pupil distance", one of the key metrics used to calibrate binocular displays such as night vision goggles and VR goggles. Another meaning of "IPD", or intra-pupil distance, is usefu
Feudal marketing: Customers are serfs, Intel Lords (Score:2)
For me, it's a somewhat medieval experience talking to Intel marketing people. They have acronyms that someone invented inside Intel, and they use them in conversation, and they become unhappy if other people don't know the acronyms and don't participate in their private reality.
I suppose they call them IPDs instead of dealers because someone at Intel is trying to inflate the importance of his department.
I've sometimes been so annoyed at Intel marketing incompetence that I have thought of applying
Editing error: (Score:2)
The last paragraph of the parent post should have read, "Alternatively, if you agree with Intel's view of reality, don't say at an outdoor party, "There are food and drinks inside",
Skeptical? See this Intel marketing HTML. (Score:2)
I know many people will be skeptical about what I've said here about the lack of expertise of the Intel marketing department. So, at the bottom of this comment is the code of an HTML page. A link to this page was received this morning from Intel.
The URL of the page is http://program.intel.com/integrator/na/en/disti_l o cator.htm [intel.com]. The page is blank, but a pop-up appears to show Intel distributors. There is a JavaScript error. The "next_check_date" is "13-Mar-03", which was more than a month ago, so pres
I'm Inside (Score:2, Insightful)
American Advertising Foundation (Score:2)
Firstly, I saw this Dell ad where at the end, it had the 'intel inside' logo animation, with the standard 'intel inside music' and light streaks emanating from it.
And ad immediately after it was something like this:
It showed a black screen, and the following words appeard with typing sounds: "What makes one computer more powerful than another?"
Then it showed that same intel inside clip except that it read 'adve
Re:American Advertising Foundation (Score:1)
-uso.
No, it's "Unagi-chan" !
Re:American Advertising Foundation (Score:1)
Re:American Advertising Foundation (Score:1)
-uso.
I just happen to know this stuff *g*
Favorite "Intel inside" quips (Score:4, Funny)
2. What?? I thought Intel inside was a warning mandated by the Truth in Advertising laws?!
if you don't like Intel... (Score:5, Insightful)
You'll probably get better price-performance from AMD anyway. I've been using AMDs since the 286 generation... running a Duron now. I've had zero problems attributable to a non-Intel processor, though I did have to install a patch for the K6-350.
If you don't need good floating-point performance, check into VIA... last I heard, they run so cool they don't need cooling fans, either.
Sometimes there's no option other than to buy from thugs, but in the x86 market, you've got two other choices. How many do you need?
If you think it necessary to buy from "industry dominant vendors" who set the "standards", what are you doing here?
Re:if you don't like Intel... (Score:1)
Re:if you don't like Intel... (Score:1)
-uso.
Is J.C. Penney next? (Score:2, Interesting)
Let's see if I understand (Score:3, Interesting)
Intel gets its slogan stolen. Intel defends its name. Defending is bad.
Sneaky sneaky (Score:3, Funny)
What they're not telling you (Score:2)
I'm kidding, I'm kidding.
All my computers... (Score:2)
Non coincidentally, I have only AMD processors.
Intel: go back to work, I am tired of companies throwing out of the window common sense in the name of protecting trademarks that are pathetic for lack of invetiveness.
Honestly, what are your lawyers thinking? Is any one with common sense left in any big coroporations?
Small Artists (Score:1)