National Geographic Society
P.O. Box 98199
Washington, DC 20090-8199
800-647-5463
Lat/Lon: 38.90531943278526, -77.0376992225647
Inspiring people to care about the planet since 1888
RSS Syndication
Trademarks are ubiquitous—we use trademarked products every day, all day long. We use Google for Internet searches, Kleenex to blow our noses, and we wear Levis. I look up words in Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary—itself a trademarked name—which defines trademark as “a device (as a word) pointing distinctly to the origin or ownership of merchandise to which it is applied and legally reserved to the exclusive use of the owner as maker or seller.”
We at National Geographic treat trademarks with respect. Our Style Manual advises: “In editorial copy a reasonable effort should be made to respect trademarks of other organizations just as we expect them to respect ours.”
Respect, yes, but we don’t follow trademarked names to the letter—that is, to the capital letter. Take Lego, for example. The trademarked name is LEGO, all capital letters. That may work on a box of LEGO (the company’s preferred form for both singular and plural toy pieces, not LEGOS). In editorial copy, however, we opt for Lego, since the letters don’t form an acronym, such as IBM (International Business Machines) or KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken). We also keep internal capital letters, in iPod, for example, although we avoid beginning a sentence with such names.
Trademarks aren’t just about capital letters, though. Companies are also careful to safeguard the meaning of their trademarks. When one of our sister publications incorrectly referred to “Styrofoam cups,” a trademark lawyer sent a strongly worded letter. (Styrofoam is the trademark for construction insulation or blocks of plastic foam used in marine, home craft, or floral industries; it’s not correct for cups, plates or coolers.)
Some trademarked names become generic, such as thermos and jeep. But until they appear in Webster’s as a generic form, that is, lowercase, we respect the trademark—and keep the lawyers away.
Subscribe to RSS feed
Ancestry.com
Buy NG Photos
Special Issues
Comments
Jun 22, 2009 2PM #
It definitely is interesting how an official name becomes the generic word (like Jell-o for gelatine.) It seems that the manufacturer of the product whose name becomes synonymous for an item is lucky in some ways.
Jun 22, 2009 2PM #
I am trying to decide whether to renew my subscription.
I sent an earlier memo expressing my outrage at your WATER story about Israel. I still have not received a response from anyone. I am waiting to communicate with someone about the article.
Jun 22, 2009 2PM #
I didn't know that trademarks can become generic. Does this also apply to copyrights? And do either trademarks and/or copyrights have a time component as does a patent?
Post a Comment