Finnegan's monthly review of essential decisions, key developments, evolving trends in trademark law, and more.
July/August 2010 Issue
Unregistrable
Brand Antics
Another summer has come and gone, and this one has been a doozey. Here at the Finnegan home office, Washington, DC, became a perpetual pressure cooker, with temperatures consistently flirting with the 100°F mark, punctuated by oppressive humidity. Only crippling thunderstorms provided a break from the monotonous heat. But they brought along vicious winds that knocked out electric power for hundreds of thousands of suburban residents for days, sparked tornado warnings, and left us in the dark without air conditioning, as the heat returned with a vengeance. Fortunately, we had it easy compared to the residents of the Gulf victimized by the massive oil-spill disaster that seemed to unfold in slow motion and whose magnitude and consequences still remain incalculable. Talk about irreparable harm. More recently, news is beginning to sink in about the unimaginable hardship, suffering, and loss being experienced in Pakistan, where flood waters have literally submerged half a nation, putting hundreds of thousands of ordinary Pakistanis in mortal jeopardy. And on the domestic front, the Great Recession continues to run its plodding and destructive course, accompanied by a drum beat of downbeat financial news.
Fortunately, amidst all the ecological and economic turmoil, we had a trademark issue to provide some much-needed comic relief. That relief came in the form of the news story that the YMCA, which generations of fitness-minded members have referred to colloquially as the “Y,” has formally jettisoned its venerable acronym of a name in favor of its conveniently succinct nickname.
Y, er, why?
Well, news reports suggest that it all comes down to branding. According to published reports, the Chicago-based nonprofit feels that many people don’t know what the group does. That might hold water if we were talking about the Freemasons, but the YMCA? The curious conclusion that the Y’s mission is somehow obscure is seemingly belied by the mobs of members in workout gear streaming in and out of thousands of YMCAs across the country. But Y officials insist that it’s supported by two years of market research. Maybe all those dedicated YMCA members are too exhausted by their vigorous spinning and Pilates classes to spread the word about what goes on within the Y’s inner sanctum.
Other reports chalk the major rebranding overhaul to the group’s desire to project a kinder, gentler image: “It’s a way of being warmer, more genuine, more welcoming, when you call yourself what everyone else calls you,” Kate Coleman, the organization’s senior vice president and chief marketing officer, is quoted as saying by The New York Times. Could it be that this pillar of countless communities—founded over a century ago as the Young Men’s Christian Association—has for decades been perceived as cold, insincere, and inhospitable? Who knew?!
Truth be told, life will go on for the “Y” and its membership with little change or disruption, just as consumers recovered from such branding traumas as Kentucky Fried Chicken becoming KFC and National Public Radio becoming simply NPR. In the era of Twitter, why saddle your brand with four letters when one will do?
But for one small but influential segment of the culture, the evisceration of MCA from Y is nothing less than cataclysmic. That segment, of course, will be the crowds at every major sporting event across the country. When the iconic Village People anthem is cued, and the fans rise to their feet as one and thrust their arms above their heads at acute angles from their shoulders, will it really be as much fun just to stay at the “Y”? And with the economy in the doldrums, do we really want to send the Village People’s cop, Native American, and construction worker to the unemployment line?
Unregistrable
Brand Antics
Another summer has come and gone, and this one has been a doozey. Here at the Finnegan home office, Washington, DC, became a perpetual pressure cooker, with temperatures consistently flirting with the 100°F mark, punctuated by oppressive humidity. Only crippling thunderstorms provided a break from the monotonous heat. But they brought along vicious winds that knocked out electric power for hundreds of thousands of suburban residents for days, sparked tornado warnings, and left us in the dark without air conditioning, as the heat returned with a vengeance. Fortunately, we had it easy compared to the residents of the Gulf victimized by the massive oil-spill disaster that seemed to unfold in slow motion and whose magnitude and consequences still remain incalculable. Talk about irreparable harm. More recently, news is beginning to sink in about the unimaginable hardship, suffering, and loss being experienced in Pakistan, where flood waters have literally submerged half a nation, putting hundreds of thousands of ordinary Pakistanis in mortal jeopardy. And on the domestic front, the Great Recession continues to run its plodding and destructive course, accompanied by a drum beat of downbeat financial news.
Fortunately, amidst all the ecological and economic turmoil, we had a trademark issue to provide some much-needed comic relief. That relief came in the form of the news story that the YMCA, which generations of fitness-minded members have referred to colloquially as the “Y,” has formally jettisoned its venerable acronym of a name in favor of its conveniently succinct nickname.
Y, er, why?
Well, news reports suggest that it all comes down to branding. According to published reports, the Chicago-based nonprofit feels that many people don’t know what the group does. That might hold water if we were talking about the Freemasons, but the YMCA? The curious conclusion that the Y’s mission is somehow obscure is seemingly belied by the mobs of members in workout gear streaming in and out of thousands of YMCAs across the country. But Y officials insist that it’s supported by two years of market research. Maybe all those dedicated YMCA members are too exhausted by their vigorous spinning and Pilates classes to spread the word about what goes on within the Y’s inner sanctum.
Other reports chalk the major rebranding overhaul to the group’s desire to project a kinder, gentler image: “It’s a way of being warmer, more genuine, more welcoming, when you call yourself what everyone else calls you,” Kate Coleman, the organization’s senior vice president and chief marketing officer, is quoted as saying by The New York Times. Could it be that this pillar of countless communities—founded over a century ago as the Young Men’s Christian Association—has for decades been perceived as cold, insincere, and inhospitable? Who knew?!
Truth be told, life will go on for the “Y” and its membership with little change or disruption, just as consumers recovered from such branding traumas as Kentucky Fried Chicken becoming KFC and National Public Radio becoming simply NPR. In the era of Twitter, why saddle your brand with four letters when one will do?
But for one small but influential segment of the culture, the evisceration of MCA from Y is nothing less than cataclysmic. That segment, of course, will be the crowds at every major sporting event across the country. When the iconic Village People anthem is cued, and the fans rise to their feet as one and thrust their arms above their heads at acute angles from their shoulders, will it really be as much fun just to stay at the “Y”? And with the economy in the doldrums, do we really want to send the Village People’s cop, Native American, and construction worker to the unemployment line?
