Comments on: NYC Shuts Down Muni T-Shirt Maker in a Major WTF

By: Joe Moore

Joe Moore — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 04:34:53 +0000

Success! The SF Weekly picked up my story ( http://blogs.sfweekly.com/thesnitch/2009/09/nycs_mta_says_they_own_the_mun.php ), made some phone calls to the NY MTA, and verified they “have no claim on Muni’s icons,” and “would need to look into the specifics of this case in greater detail to determine why the letter may have been sent.” In addition, the NY MTA states that the “images on Mr. Moore’s blog did not appear to show anything that would represent a trademark violation against the New York MTA.”

Thanks again everyone for your support!

By: Joe Moore

Joe Moore — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 17:22:39 +0000

The bagel story is really interesting. What would have constituted “enough” to alleviate the (imaginary) confusion? Did they really need to flip the bullets backwards? What if they had, say, rotated them 45 degrees counter-clockwise, or 20 degrees, or 5 degrees? When is the same not the same?

By: Jim from NY

Jim from NY — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 01:43:09 +0000

The attorney who sent 40withegg the C&D letter is the very same attorney who took on a bagel shop ( http://www.brooklynpaper.com/stories/29/5/29_05bklynangle.html ), a photographer selling prints of pictures he took on the subway because the route bullet is a part of the image (http://www.flickr.com/groups/laprotest/discuss/72157621582231804/), and a bakery selling cookies with frosting designed in the shape/colors of the route bullets…

If only the MTA spent as much time and effort in repairing its tunnels and not letting the roof cave in ( http://wahi.typepad.com/the_streets_where_we_live/2009/08/1-train-service-repair-update—subway-now-closed-from-137th-street-to-dyckman.html )

As for the revenue the MTA gets from licensing these products – a recent news report stated that they made a whopping $200,000. I wonder how much they spent in legal fees and resources chasing down so-called infringement.

Also of note is that the “N” bullet that was the issue here is registered in the USPTO specifically as a “black N in a yellow circle”…

By: jeff

jeff — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 20:09:36 +0000

I’m certainly no lawyer, but in this case, wouldn’t MTA have to issue a cease-and-desist to SFMTA also? I mean, they use the ever-so-creative letter-in-a-colored-circle logo, too.

By: Cate

Cate — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 20:00:39 +0000

I’m not so sure that the MTA has the law wrong, unfortunately. That’s not, of course, to say that they should be chasing you about it. Trademark fair use is a tricky argument to make, especially when commercial use is involved. Just calling something a parody or satire doesn’t make it so, and it’s not the end of the analysis in any event.

Good luck!

By: George

George — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 17:46:33 +0000

Interesting that the photo you selected for the MTA happens to be for the most screwed up station in that system. For the uninitiated, it’s an asymmetric station. You can transfer from the downtown 6 to the B, D, F, or V, but you can’t do the reverse — transfer from the B, D, F, or V to the uptown 6.

By: Joe Moore

Joe Moore — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 05:32:43 +0000

BTW — I’m still creating the shirts so if you don’t see your MUNI line then check back later!

By: Joe Moore

Joe Moore — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 05:31:40 +0000

Hello, everyone, and thank you for your support! It’s good to know that everyone is as flabbergasted at the NY MTA’s lack of understanding of the law when it comes to satire. Fair use, anyone?

Let’s hope Zazzle is more resonable than CafePress: http://www.zazzle.com/phallen/gifts?cg=196989349771248797

By: driver

driver — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 04:44:05 +0000

Now I really really want one of the T shirts. Is there a way to get one?

By: Beth W

Beth W — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 01:54:35 +0000

Cafe Press and similar won’t sell anything that they remotely think constitutes a copyright/trademark violation, which includes artwork that features various artists’ likenesses, no matter how artistically re-created. Hence why I’m not selling any “Tori Amos Has a Posse” or “Debbie Gibson Did It” gear, despite having designed such gear. Actually, the problem is that Cafe Press can get in trouble since they get a cut of sales, even if you’re selling wares at cost.