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New Legal Question
Hello,
The company I work for will be producing a commercial for a local car dealership. The spot is slated to run during New England Patriots football games. Obviously we don’t have permission to mention the Patriots in the commercial, or to use their logo.
If we shoot a spot with the talent wearing Patriots colors (but not an official Patriots jersey with the Patriots logo on it), and she says the line “go Pats” (not “Go Patriots”), what kind of legalities might we be toying with?
Again, we are not displaying the Patriots logo, and we are saying “Go Pats”, instead of “Go Patriots”.
Just a side note, I’ve seen many businesses produce commercials with the line “Go Sox” in it when that business is not affiliated with the Boston Red Sox.
Are nicknames for teams and organizations Trademarked along with official names?
Thanks,
Aaron
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17 Replies
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Aaron,
Reading between the lines of your post, it’s seems that what you’re really saying is: “We would like to capitalize on an affiliation with the New England Patriots, but we either can’t afford it, don’t wish to pay for it, or for some other reason we are unable to affiliate ourselves officially in the sanctioned and legally approved manner, so we’re looking for loopholes.”
Is that a close translation?
Can you read between the lines and guess what my thought is on the subject?
David
David Roth Weiss
Director/Editor
David Weiss Productions, Inc.
Los AngelesPOST-PRODUCTION WITHOUT THE USUAL INSANITY ™
A forum host of Creative COW’s Apple Final Cut Pro, Business & Marketing, Indie Film & Documentary, and Film History & Appreciations forums.
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No logo, no team name, I would think you’re ok. Team colors are fine since they’re just red white and blue.
Just absolutely positively stay away from the official shirts / logos and don’t say the full name Patriots. I would think Go Pats is probably generic enough, but if you really want to be completely safe you could even go more generic like “Let’s go Win!” or “Let’s Go!” or some variant of that.
Are nicknames copyrighted? I’m not sure. You could look at the official Patriots website and see if they have a “Go Pats” is an officially trademarked yada yada yada of the New England Patriots Football Team, etc…
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Editor, Colorist, Director, Writer, Consultant, Author.
Credits include multiple Emmy, Telly, Aurora and Peabody Awards.
Owner, Biscardi Creative Media featuring HD Post
Biscardi Creative MediaCreative Cow Forum Host:
Apple Final Cut Pro, Apple Motion, Apple Color, AJA Kona, Business & Marketing, Maxx Digital. -
Why not contact the front office of the Pats. They probably have a PDF they can send you of what’s allowed and what isn’t.
As for your actual commercial, there are so many things you can do to show football without having team jerseys and logos. Think about the displays at your local supermarket leading up to the superbowl. My Stop and Shop store surrounds their Doritos display with astroturf, football imagery, pom poms and generic banners.
The audience knows who the local team is, you don’t have to pretend to be something you are not. Just sell the cars, the service and the idea of local team spirit.
Stock footage of a generic football game, crowd noise and footbally graphics can go a long way.
Focus on the message.Mike Cohen
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Good stuff Mike!
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Editor, Colorist, Director, Writer, Consultant, Author.
Credits include multiple Emmy, Telly, Aurora and Peabody Awards.
Owner, Biscardi Creative Media featuring HD Post
Biscardi Creative MediaCreative Cow Forum Host:
Apple Final Cut Pro, Apple Motion, Apple Color, AJA Kona, Business & Marketing, Maxx Digital. -
David,
I have nothing to do with the writing of and development of our spots. I am, however, more concious of the law than my bosses are. If we get sued, I could lose my job, so it’s in my best interest to ask these questions. And yes, I am looking for a loophole, because no we can’t afford to pay the Patriots, and the car dealership is not an “official” sponsor. And if I had to “read between the lines” on your “thoughts” on the subject, I would guess that you would never try to imply affiliation with an organization without an agreement in place, and that you would never try to take advantage of a loophole.
I’ve thought more about my original post in the last couple hours, and having her say “Go New England” instead of “Go Pats” would spare us any potential legal ramifications (sp?). After all, the Patriots can’t stop us from using their colors, they can only top us from mentioning their name, or using their logo.
Best,
Aaron
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[Aaron Cadieux] “I’ve thought more about my original post in the last couple hours, and having her say “Go New England” instead of “Go Pats” would spare us any potential legal ramifications (sp?). After all, the Patriots can’t stop us from using their colors, they can only top us from mentioning their name, or using their logo. “
I don’t believe that’s so Aaron. There’s really only one football team referred to as “New England,” so it is transparent to anyone that a football related ad referring to New England is an attempt to capitalize on the Patriots name and the marketability that comes with it.
I’m not criticizing you, I’m critical of the Patriots tie-in. Like Mike suggested, it’s quite alright to be creative and to toss in as much football stuff as possible, just abandon anything that attempts to capitalize on the Pats.
David Roth Weiss
Director/Editor
David Weiss Productions, Inc.
Los AngelesPOST-PRODUCTION WITHOUT THE USUAL INSANITY ™
A forum host of Creative COW’s Apple Final Cut Pro, Business & Marketing, Indie Film & Documentary, and Film History & Appreciations forums.
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Rather than thinking of ways around the rules, think of some creative ways to help viewers make the connection. For example:
“Heading to the big game this weekend? Be sure to stop by Family Ford on Route 1 in Foxboro.”
or
“Show your team spirit in Foxboro and your American spirit by checking out the latest Ford models in our Fall clearance.”
or
“It’s football season in New England. And it’s the season to save big in our October Madness sale. Tailgating is a blast with a new F-150. We’ll even throw in the charcoal!”
you know, I could sure go for a hot dog…
Just some food for thought.
Mike
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Wow, those are all great. Need to hire you as a copy writer sometime!
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Editor, Colorist, Director, Writer, Consultant, Author.
Credits include multiple Emmy, Telly, Aurora and Peabody Awards.
Owner, Biscardi Creative Media featuring HD Post
Biscardi Creative MediaCreative Cow Forum Host:
Apple Final Cut Pro, Apple Motion, Apple Color, AJA Kona, Business & Marketing, Maxx Digital. -
I guess those months at Dimension Media Services cable advertising paid off. And I thought all I learned was how to film shots of raw steaks for the weekly IGA donuts.
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[Mike Cohen] “And I thought all I learned was how to film shots of raw steaks for the weekly IGA donuts. “
mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm, steak donuts, mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm with pink frosting……..
Walter Biscardi, Jr.
Editor, Colorist, Director, Writer, Consultant, Author.
Credits include multiple Emmy, Telly, Aurora and Peabody Awards.
Owner, Biscardi Creative Media featuring HD Post
Biscardi Creative MediaCreative Cow Forum Host:
Apple Final Cut Pro, Apple Motion, Apple Color, AJA Kona, Business & Marketing, Maxx Digital.
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