Okay so since this my first blog and I want to be cool I am going to start off with a flashy subject copyright law! Okay settle down I know this sounds boring but bear with me for a little bit. In our first class of the year we talked about the Old Spice marketing campaign from 2010 and how successful it was from the commercials to youtube it was incredible (I had the old spice ringtone). Anyways if you don’t know what I am talking about check out one of the short commercials here and I am sure you will recognize it:
So as the popularity of this old spice guy promotional campaign grew countless parodies were made including one of my favorites from sesame street (you know you have made it when sesame street does a parody):
Sesame Street: Smell Like a Monster
So obviously there is nothing wrong with parodies as they help draw more attention to the brand but what about other brands that rip off the idea or concept? Do those help the original brand in any way and should they even be allowed? Take a look at this Dairy Queen commercial for example:
Now you may be wondering is that copyright infringement? Well no it isn’t (I looked it up) and according to both Canadian and American law you can copyright/trademark names, faces (designs), lyrics/jingles etc. However, you cannot trademark or copyright an idea and that is essential what the old spice guy is an idea. You may be able to copyright his likeness and name but not his actions or swagger.
So where does this leave us? Well Dairy Queen legally took Old Spice’s Idea and re worked it a little but judging by the youtube views (several million compared to a couple hundred of thousand), you can never beat the guy who gets there first.
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