Archive: December, 2009

With the end of the year nearing, it is just sinking in to me that we are also closing a decade.
The “00″ years are finally done and to many people, it was the worst decade in our lifetime. However good or bad, this decade generated a need for an industry that many of us work in: Reputation Management.

Lets take a look back at how we got here:

At the end of the last decade, or 1999, we were all coming into 2000 glued to our computers, but not on our favorite social media outlet, but rather the power outlet; With Y2K creating a “fear generated” cottage industry, many of us were wondering how valid these fears really were. The possibility of your computer causing your downfall really set the stage for the ORM business and smart businesses prepared for the worst.

Then, when nothing of substance happened, there were many garage sales selling generators and gas cans that summer. Many houses ate rice with every meal for a while to put a dent in those 100lb bags. The Y2K business as a whole was closed that night. However, there are other issues that you may or may not have forgotten which developed the reputation management industry into the entity as we know it today.

Recently, a Microsoft disclosure states that a Chinese contract developer working for MSN China was developing “Juku” a micro-blogging site similar to Plurk. According to Plurk, they were doing more than developing, they actually copied code. Microsoft has apologized, but Plurk most likely will take legal action. Similarly, Bing! is threatened with a lawsuit over its very name.

This is not Microsoft’s first rodeo however.

Consider the following suit that happened early in Microsoft’s history: Apple Computer, Inc. v. Microsoft Corporation, 35 F.3d 1435 (9th Cir. 1994).
Like the aforementioned Plurk suit, this also was a copyright infringement lawsuit in which Apple Computer, Inc. tried to block both Microsoft Corporation and Hewlett-Packard from using or developing a visual graphical user interface that was similar to Apple’s Lisa and Macintosh operating systems.

This suit began in 1988 and lasted four years, then the appeal in 1994 and Apple’s appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court were both denied. Apple neglects to properly emphasize in my opinion how that the operating system was not even an idea before a visit to Xerox, and was considered technology that Xerox had no interest in pursuing. Imagine the possible lawsuit that could have ensued over that?

The North Face Apparel Corporation is suing a small suburban St. Louis-area company called The South Butt.
The lawsuit filed last week in federal court in St. Louis seeks unspecified damages and asks the court to prohibit The South Butt from marketing and selling its parody product line which includes T-shirts, fleece jackets and sweatshirts. article here.

A teenager who started the company is named on the lawsuit. His attorney says the company was started to help pay for college by the owner.
It appears that this is a fair use lawsuit. as in title 17 107 of United states law.

As a good rule to go by, copying is not usually, legally, a fair use. Without an author’s permission, such a use obviously violates the author’s copyright. Non-commercial use is usually fair use, but in this case it is blatantly commercial. Granted, many people these days confuse moral imperative for actual law, and would argue that the 18 year old creator is simply trying to pay for school; This is when unintentional violations often occur.

Zhu Zhu Pets are kicking the stuffing out “Elmo” anything; They are the new hit and the superstars of the 2009 holiday shopping season.
Retailers everywhere are selling out of the  $10 fuzzy hamster toys, but the demand is pushing prices much higher. For example, Toys R Us online is sold out,  but don’t fear, Amazon.com is selling Zhu Zhu hamsters for about $50-$60 each.

Cindysbeans.com has the set of 4 available for $189.00 and they are in stock for Christmas delivery. Individually, they sell for $29.00 on the site but those units are backordered and will not ship until after Christmas. You, however, pay now.

Ebay even has sellers listing JUST the information on where to find them for $4 each. ZHU ZHU PETS.ASIA is listed on ebay for 2.3 Million or best offer;  Nothing says you have “made it” quite like a variant of your brand being squatted for millions.

Google trends has tracked the increase in interest of search using the keywords “zhu zhu pets” and it can be found here.