Stupid Guest Tricks

PatchOBlack wrote:...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.

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.

DisneyMom wrote:Hmmmm....I wonder if the Mickey Icon shape originated with the licensed character, or if the shape pre-existed?

Water molecule:



I suspect that water preceded Disney by a few years.

And kids, next time you're at the park, make sure to look out at the water and claim to see all those Hidden Mickeys!

Buggy wrote:Water molecule:



I suspect that water preceded Disney by a few years.

And kids, next time you're at the park, make sure to look out at the water and claim to see all those Hidden Mickeys!

Eh. If you want to get scientific, that's a graphic highlighting the spherical space each atom in the molecule occupies, not the molecule itself.

The actual molecule would be closer to this:



Not quite the glaring mouse icon it's made out to be. :D:

Buggy wrote:Water molecule:



I suspect that water preceded Disney by a few years.

And kids, next time you're at the park, make sure to look out at the water and claim to see all those Hidden Mickeys!

I like it, Buggy! (I think it looks a little like a Princess Leia icon, too. Might offend the Star Wars licensing peeps ;) )

Any other pre-Disney Mickeys? Anyone? Bueller? :p:

As someone noted, that is a simplified interpretation of what a water molecule is. It is also unlikely that it will cause brand-confusion or that the drawing is associated with Disney.

The pancakes, on the other hand, both share a very similar name and an identical shape to those licensed from Disney. Now, I'm not saying Disney should rush out and start legal proceedings against Mimi's Cafe. All I'm saying is that Mimi's Cafe may be on shaky ground should Disney call them on this.

Please don't take this the wrong way,but I don't see people lining up around the block to eat Mimi mouse pancakes. Granted,Mickey Mouse is the property of Disney,but he pretty much 'belongs' to the whole world. Kinda like when some one uses the phrase "Coke Bottle". "A Corvette has a Coke Bottle shape". Did GM have to pay the Coke Co. a fee 'anytime' some one uses it? Howz about the phrase "Coke Bottle" glasses?
Did Sally Ride get permission for her famous quote as the first American female in space? Anyone and 'everyone' in the know,knew exactaly what she meant. Just my $.02.

Infringement is a very serious issue! People might get confused and not be able to tell the difference between canned Unicorn meat and pork and you might get some of our monies!

PatchOBlack wrote:...
The pancakes, on the other hand, both share a very similar name and an identical shape to those licensed from Disney. ...

*runs back to look at picture again* When did Mick get an ear tuck? The proportions are way off.

darph nader wrote:Please don't take this the wrong way,but I don't see people lining up around the block to eat Mimi mouse pancakes. Granted,Mickey Mouse is the property of Disney,but he pretty much 'belongs' to the whole world. Kinda like when some one uses the phrase "Coke Bottle". "A Corvette has a Coke Bottle shape". Did GM have to pay the Coke Co. a fee 'anytime' some one uses it? Howz about the phrase "Coke Bottle" glasses?
Did Sally Ride get permission for her famous quote as the first American female in space? Anyone and 'everyone' in the know,knew exactaly what she meant. Just my $.02.

Disney "belongs to the whole world?"

Umm, I bet the lawyers at Disney corporate have a different view of that!

while the terms you used are just part of our language and indeed show that Disney and Disney products, much like coke, have become houshold words, there is a world of difference in talking about it, and selling a product that closely resembles something.

Intelllectual property rights are a big area that has made quite a few lawyers some pretty good money.

(a corvette is coke bottle shaped? may west was, but a corvette? I thought its shape was more like a stingray, which if memory serves, was the original name for them)

darph nader wrote:Please don't take this the wrong way,but I don't see people lining up around the block to eat Mimi mouse pancakes. Granted,Mickey Mouse is the property of Disney,but he pretty much 'belongs' to the whole world.

& 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.