Just to be clear, I’m not in any way having a dig at makers for making a few quid, but at the kind of people who want to trademark something to stop them … and the box ticking paper sniffers who let them do it. If it were the phrase as it appears in the book then grand, fair play and all that, but it isn’t.
I’m really not liking the idea that someone can trademark something that’s nearly what they wrote in a book.
Until I read this thread I didn’t realise that’s where the phrase comes from, I would have been 13/14 when it came out, too old to have bothered reading it myself and far too long before I’d a child of my own to read it to. I’d young cousins and the book rings a bell, a very small bell but still so I’m guessing someone I knew owned a copy.
I love you to the moon and back is just the kind of thing a kid would say, any kid which is probably why most people think it’s a traditional saying, it’s entirely believable that it could be. I’d be willing to bet that a fair few people using the phrase don’t even know where it came from and have never heard of the book.
I have to agree @JOYSofGLASS and @SeetheWoods. I’m all for people protecting their intellectual property, but Trademarking something that’s not even a direct quote from the book doesn’t sit well with me at all. Particularly when it comes to any challenge to the Trademark being expensive in the form of a court case that only large businesses can afford.
I could completely understand it if people were using the words alongside images of hares, as that would be a direct correlation. But your lovely sun catcher Joy has no correlation to the book at all! I feel that quote is in common usage, and not just because of the book owned by Walkers.
Yes it can still be used on jewellery and I’ve seen an email from walker books I think who has the trademark to confirm. But again it probably has been over used so it’s time to get the thinking caps on and mane something new!!
You may not know, but Car manufacturers like Ford and others trademark loads and loads of words, and keep them in reserve in case they want to call their latest creation The Ford plonker… or whatever. Once they do that you can’t use their word for your car or automotive bit.
Rolls Royce nearly came unstuck one year when the German translation of the Rolls Royce Mist translated into, apparently Rolls Royce poo…!
Although this thread is about trademarks, I provide a useful link to changes in copyright law for consumers:
Clever.
But you might need deep pockets if a lawyer wanted to challenge it in court and saw the full stop as a way of getting around the trademark. Personally, I think it’s great, and they would be real meanies if they took issue with it.
Hehe… that’s like the Toyota MR2 - which translates in France to “eM eR Deux” (or Merde, which is also the French word for Poo)! I think they decided to call it something else in France…
I am afraid that your title would still be considered infringement. The fact that you have creatively tried to circumvent the trademark would most likely prove the owner’s case.
As I always advise, if you have a question about copyright, trademark or patent it is best to consult an IP specialist in this area as they would be able to give you a definitive answer.
Don’t think i will be consulting anyone officially, hardly worth the bother.
If I consider it to be a problem them I will stop making it or simply rename it to something totally innocent. This is just one of my many designs and I don’t really care what it is called. The name suited it once I’d made it so that is what I christened it but it can be Heart in a Moon - won’t make any difference to when I sell it. Someone will see it and like it and buy it. I don;t think they will buy it because they searched for it .
Obviously the publishers liked the name as well even if incredibly cheekily they didn’t pen it in the first place and the person who did didn’t word it like that but that seems to be the way things are ,
C’est la vie and all that xxx
I won’t tell you what ‘pajero’ translates to in Spanish - suffice to say they didn’t sell many when it was first launched over there under that name…but it still raises a smile everytime I see someone driving one
I see many items on Folksy that are copyrighted too, but it’s up to those shops really. All I wanted to do with this post is to let people know as it had come up on several groups I belong to and I was pretty gobsmacked by it to be honest. Of course what people do with the info is up to them, but at least people know and can decide from there.
Mine is now called “I love the moon” and if anyone is ridiculous to suggest that that is a ‘legal’ abbrevation of the full expression, I shall take myself back to university, get a law degree and fight them tooth and nail - so there:)
“Walker Books has registered the phrase I love you to the moon and back in certain trademark classes in connection with our picture book, Guess How Much I Love You. We have not registered the phrase in the jewellery class so you do not need our permission, however please note that any association of jewellery or other products using this phrase with our book as a means of selling/promoting those products is not permitted”
So I’m OK to use it for my particular needs - great news!
I am really glad that you have changed the name. I would hate to see any Folksy folk flirting with infringement, Legal challenges are rarely pleasant. Keep making your gorgeous glass!
I’m wondering how many greetings cards are breaking copyright with various slogans, as the card section is saturated with recognisable sayings at the moment.
Just got to wondering about this phrase as it is so prevalent now. My oldest daughter will be 50 this year and I have been telling her " I love you to the moon and back " since she was a toddler.
xxx