INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

Links / Slogans / Punchlines & Intellectual Property

In mid-1990’s, FOX TV channel started calling its news-reports

“Fair & Balanced.”

In fact, FOX adopted “Fair & Balanced” as its motto.

Last week (or month), author Al Franken published a book titled,

“Lies and the Lying Liars who tell them: A Fair & Balanced Look at the Right.”

Now FOX has sued Franken for using the words “Fair & Balanced”!

FOX says the words “Fair & Balanced” are FOX’s intellectual property, and no one can use these without FOX’s permission!

Does this sound absurd / lunatic?

Not to lawyer Randy Mastro of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, who claims—

“Fair & Balanced” are not mere adjectives of the English language!

This is a motto that FOX built up over the past 7 years, at a cost of $6 million plus thousands of hours of promotion!

Now Franken (author) is trying to expropriate this motto for commercial gain (money he will receive from his book).

We don’t know what the Court will rule — but precedents tell that FOX might win!

We may think that would be “absurd” — but we have to survive & grow within the legal framework of the country where we operate. There is no running away.

Therefore, it is very, very important to pay close attention to this aspect of

BRANDING / POSITIONING

and, in the process, acquiring (through long & continuous usage)

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS!

e.g.:
For 2/3 years now, we have been using the slogan—

“For Executive Search – Corporate India’s First Choice.”

We have displayed this boldly on the homepage of www.3pjobs.com.

I don’t remember whether we have displayed this on other pages too. If not, we should do so — pronto! (Abhi, pl. note.)

And by a copy of this note, I recommend to Nimit that this slogan should also find prominent place on our (3P):

• Letterheads
• Visiting cards
• Brochures
• Proposals / Interview Assessment Sheets
• Emails
• On the rear window of our cars
• Any place where corporate HR may read
• Our adverts (we have done this in past)
• etc.

In thousand different ways, we must convey to the world that this slogan is our INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY.

Ideally, we should “register” it — first in India, then in the USA. Same with 3P’s logo.

It is no different with RecruitGum — and the time is NOW!

In my note on Branding / Positioning of RecruitGum (I have misplaced my copy), I had coined a few slogans / punchlines — e.g.,

For “GumSearch”

“Shortlisting Competences / Not Resumes.”

Not only must we use these (I believe there were four) on RecruitGum website (on appropriate pages),
but — as mentioned earlier (in respect of 3P) —

we must use these slogans absolutely everywhere that we can (letterheads, visiting cards, brochures, etc.) — boldly and visibly.

Through first — and then continuous usage — we must appropriate these as our Intellectual Property before someone else does!

Once again, ideally, we should “register” these.

This (creation of Intellectual Property) is part of Sanjeev’s job, and he must take the initiative in this matter (creating artwork / contacting patent attorney, etc.).

In this context, also see Annex.

Here I have listed some subject titles used by Economic Times / Financial Express for their various pages, columns, and features, etc.

Some of these titles are self-explanatory, whereas some are (deliberately?) made mysterious — to arouse readers’ curiosity.

Some newspapers do list these on their front page, mentioning page numbers for each of these features/topics.

This is quite like a website homepage displaying its “links”. The only difference is that in case of a website, we could (and must) display all links on all pages (on left sidebar) so that a surfer can jump from any webpage to any other.

Once one newspaper has started calling its feature by a given name (e.g., people speak), then it is very unlikely that other newspapers will copy the same.

It is a matter of creative ego — and copy is a form of flattery!

So let us be the FIRST with our slogans / punchlines / mottos / links, etc. — and FAST.

(signed)
cc: Nimit

Annex

Topic Titles in Eco. Times & eFinancial Express

Line Up	Property / General Realities
Nice to Know	Dateline India
Inside Track / The Speed Zone	Money & You
Briefly	World Update
Boundary Line	Corporate Counsel
Spectrum	Opinion
First Look	Punchline
Newsmakers	Mailbox
Executive Briefing	Special Reports
Quote / Unquote	The Knowledge Society
Week in Review	Business Banter
Short Takes	Tidbytes
Fact File
Best Sellers
In Person
Off the Shelf
People Speak
Movers & Shakers
Dial Up
City Lights
Watch Out
First Notes
On the Box
Brainstorm
Corporate Workout