Tag: logos

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Logo Trademark Takeaways

There’s a lot of talk right now in Lexington about trademarks because a local brewery has a larger brewery going after them.

I figured this might be a good time to dig out an old article that’s very relevant regarding logos and trademarks:
http://www.creativepro.com/article/sometimes-a-logo-is-just-a-logo

Some key trademark takeaways from the article:

  • a trademark in one category does not necessarily provide protection in another category, especially if there is little or no overlap in the goods or services.
  • The main concept at work in trademark law is likelihood of confusion.
  • In very high-profile cases, with brands like Apple or Nike, there is another concept at work, that of dilution.
  • Many identities that face infringement issues are those with a simple graphic symbol, often a geometric shape, slapped up next to a simple type treatment of the name.

Trademark Takeaways

If you were a graphic designer back in 2005 you probably remember the interesting conversations being had because of a high profile company, Quark, doing a logo redesign that ended up looking like many other logos already in existence. Being used in other industries of course but it still created a lot of valuable discussion on the topic of logos and trademarks.

 

Related to the local debate (external links):

  1. Independent Brewers United says they own sixes and nines: http://boingboing.net/2013/05/22/independent-brewers-united-say.html
  2. Magic Hat lawsuit: Social media explodes after legal challenge that 6 is 9: http://www.aceweekly.com/2013/05/magic-hat-lawsuit-social-media-explodes-after-legal-challenge-that-6-is-9/

 

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Why using “DIY logo software” isn’t always a good idea:

There are dozens of software suites on the market that advertise “make your own logos” but there are a couple of reasons you might want to rethink that, especially if you are looking to start a business that looks professional and is in it for the long haul.

Major downsides to using a logo software suite tend to be:

  • Lack of Originality: You’re basically working with clip art that’s customized some so your logo will be less original and unique to you. If other businesses decide to buy the software and use the same icon or graphic as you use then your brand will be less recognizable as your own.
  • Lack of Scalability: most software doesn’t offer output in a vector format. If the logo isn’t vector it will pixelize or look fuzzy when scaled up for a sign, truck or billboard. Some software IS vector these days.
  • The Human Factor: and the person operating said software still needs to have some eye for design to create something that looks good. Yes, some software may assist you in creating something better looking but there’s often the option for human error …. errr I mean bad choice in customizations to be made.

When you might want to use a logo software suite? Small event logos would be a good example such as for a church or small personal group. When you don’t want to invest too heavily in a logo for a one time event but might want something with a little more detail than simple clipart or maybe text that stays in the same place each time the graphic is used.