Using A Big Company C&D For Marketing
from the vote-daisy dept
Eric Goldman alerts us to an interesting response by Method Products, a small natural cleaning supply products company, after receiving a cease & desist letter from cleaning giant Clorox (pdf), demanding that Method stop using a daisy in its packaging on certain cleaning products because of Clorox's trademarks on "Green Works," including the use of a yellow flower, related to Green Works products. In response, Method set up VoteDaisy.com, with a little poll asking people "who should own the daisy" with three options: Clorox, Mother Nature or Method. Nicely done.
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When will Goliaths ever learn?
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Epic Lulz
What fools these mortals be...
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Or some
Seems I've found a new supplier of cleaning products so sc$%# you Clorox, you deserve everything you get (or don't get).
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We need reform. A big one!
At least in this case they will worry about losing the brand image they have tried to make in long time (if any!) and getting lost in oblivion rather than just using legal muscle power to threaten small companies.
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Clean it up
If it were a stylised flower picture - designed to look like a flower but having specific design qualities that make it unique would maybe pass.
I have seen companies use things like trees etc for their logos - but they are stylised to look a specific way - so as to make the brand easier to recognise, the logos themselves are not an acurate representation of the subject matter.
Me thinks Clorox has crossed a border here in trying to trademark something they do not own nor have designed or invented. Votedaisy.com shows that Clorox has the least support on this. But still I don't see Clorox doing much with the Daisy just now so maybe they have decided to backoff.
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The yellow daisy used by Method isn't on any packages. It was used in an advertisement.
Good thing that I used up my last bottle of Clorox product. They won't be getting a penny of my money.
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Method Cleaners
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Re: We need reform. A big one!
Unfortunately, it has gotten perverted as to be more power for the corporations just like the rest of IP law.
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I votes for mother nature!
So Clorox being connected with green works even as a trade mark is just a bit beyond the pale while they continue to needlessly alarm people about the bacteria and stuff in their homes good and bad -- so just wipe then all out!
Yellow daisy's too, while we're at it.
ttfn
John
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lettter to Clorox
Thank you for alerting me to the Method Products Company. Without your efforts I would never have known of them. Your efforts are appreciated and I just what to say that your marketing er legal er advertising department - whatever you're calling it these days, is top notch.
Thanks,
A new Method Products customer
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Using their own "weapons" against them
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There's more to this case...
So, there's probably some bad blood here, on the part of Clorox.
For reference: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/drew-fraser/a/938/3a7
That said, all the stuff about Method turning this into great publicity for themselves is still true.
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