Amusing Menu Item or Copyright Infringement?

[darph nader]

& you thought this would save you. :D: :D: Going against the flow again, but I totally agree with you darph,,,,, & this is scarey. ;) Disney used to sell MM waffle & pancake makers. They still sell the small shaped ears @ Market House, Emporium, & WOD. The MM ear toasters were sold until 02 or so. Any business could buy & use those. I don't see a warning to restaurants not to use. Watch for it darph. I'm braced.

As far as the waffle and pancake makers,those were licenced items. Ergo,they get their cut. I'm sure clinics and day-care centers are just raking in the $$ using Disney stuff on their walls.
(I'm trying to wrap my mind about you agreeing with me,too weird. Must go hide in closet)

[GRUMPY PIRATE]

Soooo if you make mickey shaped food, does that get you out of jury duty?

[Main Streeter]

As far as the waffle and pancake makers,those were licensed items. Ergo,they get their cut.
(I'm trying to wrap my mind about you agreeing with me,too weird.

K, thanks. :) Forgot abt them being licensed items. "Ergo"??? Whatever. :D:
Agreeing with you has been easy lately. You aren't an Idiot. ;)

[Mr. M]

There is a big difference between making "mouse" pancakes at home for the kids, and putting them on the menu of a chain of restaurants.



Consider this: Copyright infringement isn't limited to exact carbon copies. It also covers when another person makes a product so similar that it can lead to brand confusion. The look of these pancakes, as well as the name of the item ("Mimi Mouse Pancakes"), seems to be more than a little inspired by the famous Mickey Mouse Pancakes. If Disney has the rights to the iconic silhouette of Mickey's head, that would likely strengthen their case. As to Disney not caring, well, it may be small potatoes, but copyright law demands that the holder of a copyright actively protects his rights, or else he could lose them.

Well, gee I guess when I wash dishes and my soap bubbles form 3 circles I better look out or Disney will sue me. And sorry to tell you but the point of a copyright is for EXACT CARBON COPIES. Otherwise copyright would be pointless.

That's always the challenge, and that's why Disney is so aggressive in their intellectual property enforcement. Like with that preschool -- they certainly could have handled it better, perhaps by offering a license for the school to use the characters rather than demanding their immediate removal -- but the one option they did not have was to ignore it.

There is ALWAYS the option to ignore it. They do have the choice to not pursue.

[chartle]

Well, gee I guess when I wash dishes and my soap bubbles form 3 circles I better look out or Disney will sue me. And sorry to tell you but the point of a copyright is for EXACT CARBON COPIES. Otherwise copyright would be pointless.

Not under intellectual property rights. Think about scripts. I can't get a copy of the script of Star Wars change a couple of words so its not an EXACT CARBON COPY (your words) and make a new movie.

And before you bring up Space Balls (I know you want to) according to this

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094012/trivia

Mel Brooks sent the script to George Lucas and was concerned that he would be offended, but Lucas called Brooks and gave him his trust after seeing Blazing Saddles (1974) and Young Frankenstein (1974).

Also under copyright law there is a fair use provision for parody.

There is ALWAYS the option to ignore it. They do have the choice to not pursue.

There is no way no how they can choose to ignore it. By ignoring it others can claim that they are not defending their copyright/trademark whatever and then anyone can use it.

So if you don't aggressively defend your rights you can lose them.

Here's the full story from snopes. http://www.snopes.com/disney/wdco/daycare.asp

Disclaimer: I'm not a lawyer, I don't even play one on TV.

[CptnSkippy]

As far as the waffle and pancake makers,those were licenced items. Ergo,they get their cut.

I don't think any restaurant can take the mickey waffle maker and use it to sell the items in their place. Could you see the Burger King on International Drive getting away with this wihout Disney getting a seperate license fee and the ability to control the quality of the product?

Likely the box has a warning in a 3 pt font somewhere near the barcode that this is licensed for home use only.

[chartle]

Well, gee I guess when I wash dishes and my soap bubbles form 3 circles I better look out or Disney will sue me. And sorry to tell you but the point of a copyright is for EXACT CARBON COPIES. Otherwise copyright would be pointless.

Forgot to add.

As long as you don't sell tickets to people so they can see the Miracle Mickey Mouse Bubbles or profit in any way either financially or not.

Your good. ;)

[chelleb]

I don't think any restaurant can take the mickey waffle maker and use it to sell the items in their place. Could you see the Burger King on International Drive getting away with this wihout Disney getting a seperate license fee and the ability to control the quality of the product?

Likely the box has a warning in a 3 pt font somewhere near the barcode that this is licensed for home use only.

Just like character shaped baking pans from Wilton are labeled "for home use only". I'm a hobby cake decorator, and if I make a licensed character cake for my neice or nephew, it's fine. My av pic for instance....I made it for myself for my birthday one year.

But if I were to sell that cake to a third party, that would be copyright infringement, and I would face the possibility of getting sued (or whatever they do). Even if I decorated Mickey Mouse with colors not normally used on him, that doesn't change the fact that it's Mickey Mouse that I was selling to someone.

Just my $.02 on my experience with copyrights :)

~Chelle

[darph nader]

Just like character shaped baking pans from Wilton are labeled "for home use only". I'm a hobby cake decorator, and if I make a licensed character cake for my neice or nephew, it's fine. My av pic for instance....I made it for myself for my birthday one year.

But if I were to sell that cake to a third party, that would be copyright infringement, and I would face the possibility of getting sued (or whatever they do). Even if I decorated Mickey Mouse with colors not normally used on him, that doesn't change the fact that it's Mickey Mouse that I was selling to someone.

Just my $.02 on my experience with copyrights :)

~Chelle

(note to self,,,do 'not' tell the baker)

[chelleb]

(note to self,,,do 'not' tell the baker)

I know that a lot of bakers do it, and I even personally know some that do, but that doesn't make it right or legal to do it. :P