Combining Nestlé trademarks, “Fun Dip” and “Drumstick”

A recent article from The Globe and Mail titled, “Toronto pulls anti-littering campaign over trademark infringement concerns”, brings with it yet another legal dispute between business organizations. By creatively combining brand names to form words like “lazy”, “low-life”, and  “selfish” – words that describe people who litter – the City of Toronto has faced numerous complaints from these big name companies, angered by the unconsented use of their trademarks.

Though, admittedly, a creative and effective strategy of marketing, I must say that it was completely careless for the City of Toronto to be operating in a business industry, and to not have been thorough with the boundaries of their marketing. With that said, I never would’ve expected the implications of these campaigns on the businesses had I not read the article. Unlike the banned Pepsi advertisement that displayed a direct attack on Coca-Cola, these anti-littering campaigns do not intentionally single out certain brands, but create a negative connotation of packaged goods in the minds of consumers. (Let’s face it, the trademarks are placed in manner that is meant to look unappealing, often torn up in a dirty environment.) Businesses within this industry will likely be impacted as consumers begin to subconsciously steer away from all packaged goods. Though cases like this are not at all uncommon, they remind me that marketing, though often seen as the “fun” side of business, can easily be entangled with the nitty-gritty aspects of the law.

The Globe and Mail article: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/industry-news/marketing/toronto-ads-crossed-the-line-with-depiction-of-prominent-brands/article20379559/