It's a big day!

[FailingEnterpriseAdmin]

It's a big day today.

1. We've smashed through our old record of 295 posts in one day. It's 9:19 PM here in San Francisco, and we've already got 362 posts!

2. I'm hearing reports from the field that our postcards are starting to get delivered to the branches. That's got to hurt.

3. The Dow Jones Industrials Average closed above 11,000 today for the first time since 2001 (I'd like to believe that improved Internet-based corporate governance efforts, like Failing Enterprise, have increased investors' confidence in the economy, but...no).

4. Howard Stern had his debut today on Sirius satellite radio (I'm aware of him but I'm not a listener).

All in all, it's been a pretty good Monday so far.

Admin

I understand that you have a great attorney and I am sure you two have already delved into the legalities of using your failing enterprise logo. I just don't see how ERAC isn't going to sue you for trademark infringment for unauthorized reproduction of the "e" on your post cards. The ERAC website says:

"ENTERPRISE, the "e" logo, HAGGLE-FREE BUYING. WORRY-FREE OWNERSHIP., the Enterprise-Certified logo, THE PERFECT USED CAR PACKAGE, the Enterprise wrapped car, and 1 888 car sales are trademarks and service marks of Enterprise Rent-A-Car Company.

Such Trademarks and service marks designated with the symbol "®" are registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and also with numerous foreign countries. For information on foreign trademark registrations of Enterprise Rent-A-Car Company, contact the local trademark offices in the countries of interest."

If the law protects you from using their logo on a mailer produced by you and destributed by you, then what good are trademark laws except to protect ERAC from you making money off the logo? I would suspect that ERAC will take this new step of yours as an invitation for legal recourse. But I sure you were aware of that.

[FailingEnterpriseAdmin]

Originally Posted by Unregistered

I understand that you have a great attorney and I am sure you two have already delved into the legalities of using your failing enterprise logo. I just don't see how ERAC isn't going to sue you for trademark infringment for unauthorized reproduction of the "e" on your post cards. The ERAC website says:

"ENTERPRISE, the "e" logo, HAGGLE-FREE BUYING. WORRY-FREE OWNERSHIP., the Enterprise-Certified logo, THE PERFECT USED CAR PACKAGE, the Enterprise wrapped car, and 1 888 car sales are trademarks and service marks of Enterprise Rent-A-Car Company.

Such Trademarks and service marks designated with the symbol "®" are registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and also with numerous foreign countries. For information on foreign trademark registrations of Enterprise Rent-A-Car Company, contact the local trademark offices in the countries of interest."

If the law protects you from using their logo on a mailer produced by you and destributed by you, then what good are trademark laws except to protect ERAC from you making money off the logo? I would suspect that ERAC will take this new step of yours as an invitation for legal recourse. But I sure you were aware of that.

I'm no attorney, but my understanding is that the trademark law allows an exception for "Fair Use", and Fair Use includes uses such as commentary, scholarship, identification, parody, etc. Yes, the postcard does include our Failing Enterprise logo parody, similar to the one at the top of every web page here on the site. It's obviously a parody and obviously different from their trademarked logo.

Parody is protected speech. I have a responsibility to not use if for any "commercial purpose", and I don't.

And I reviewed it with my attorney before we sent it. I think we're OK here. I have regular, ongoing conversations with an in-house attorney at Enterprise, and if they have any objections they know how to contact me and my attorney.

Admin

[gp65:(]

Originally Posted by FailingEnterpriseAdmin

I'm no attorney, but my understanding is that the trademark law allows an exception for "Fair Use", and Fair Use includes uses such as commentary, scholarship, identification, parody, etc. Yes, the postcard does include our Failing Enterprise logo parody, similar to the one at the top of every web page here on the site. It's obviously a parody and obviously different from their trademarked logo.

Parody is protected speech. I have a responsibility to not use if for any "commercial purpose", and I don't.

And I reviewed it with my attorney before we sent it. I think we're OK here. I have regular, ongoing conversations with an in-house attorney at Enterprise, and if they have any objections they know how to contact me and my attorney.

Admin

I hope ERAC's legal staff gets pissed off at working at such a shit company, and starts posting here.

That would kick ass.