Monday, July 10, 2006
AMS Consultants Co-Author Trademark Reporter Article on Dilution
The article "Dilution Through the Looking Glass: A Marketing Look at the Trademark Dilution Revision Act of 2005," which was co-authored by Joel Steckel of New York University and Bob Klein and Shelley Schussheim of Applied Marketing Science, appeared in the May-June issue of The Trademark Reporter," the official journal of the International Trademark Association.
The article takes a marketing science view of the Trademark Dilution Resolution Act of 2005 (“TDRA”), drafted to clarify dilution law following Moseley v. V Secret Catalogue, Inc.. The TDRA does not specifically address what it means to "impair the distinctiveness" or "harm the reputation" of a famous mark, the critical phrases of the definitions of dilution. Nor does it describe how to show that a trademark or trade name is likely to dilute a famous mark. But for many years, the marketing science academic literature has dealt with the analogous concept of “brand equity” and has identified both measurement tools and situations in which brand equity has been negatively affected. These similarities between Brand Equity and Trademark Dilution provide the means to use consumer surveys in the pursuit of TDRA dispute resolution. The article concludes that:
- dilution studies need not focus on purchase intention or actual marketplace sales, but rather brand associations ;
- a test-control experimental format can prove or disprove likelihood of dilution ;
- exposure to an alleged to be diluting stimulus must involve repetition of time to replicate the "gradual whittling away;" and
- tracking studies can be useful supplements to experimentation in addressing both internal and external validity.
For a link to the article, posted with permission from The Trademark Reporter, please click here. For more information about this article, please contact Shelley Schussheim at either (781) 250-6306 or sschussheim@ams-inc.com.
About Applied Marketing Science
Applied Marketing Science is an established consulting firm with two distinct businesses: helping product development teams understand their customers' wants and needs for input into new product and service development; and assisting attorneys with consumer behavior and marketing issues in litigation using surveys and other techniques.
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Press Contact:
Laurel Ackerman, Director of Marketing
(781) 250-6316 or
lackerman@ams-inc.com
