HOW TO LEGALLY EXPLOIT TRADEMARKED TRENDS for Redbubble, Teepublic, Etsy and other POD Sites
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 16 ม.ค. 2021
- Even though print on demand websites like Redbubble, Teepublic and Etsy have a boatload of trademark-infringing designs, we know that we are not allowed to infringe on a company's trademarks. This means that we cannot legally make Star Wars, movies, television or music designs featuring recognizable trademarks and logos.
However, there is an opportunity to take advantage of the IDEA behind the trademarked image, song, television show or movie. Here I walk through the strategy. This strategy INVOLVES WORK and RESEARCH. Stay tuned near the end of the video for a pitfall-make sure you do your homework!
#printondemand
#zenwatercooler
#trademarks - แนวปฏิบัติและการใช้ชีวิต
Great tutorial!
Recently, I've had some success with my plain text designs, using film/TV quotes. Before I slap my quote on products, I simply search it for trademark.
To my surprise, my first one, uttered by a character now owned by Disney (what friggen character isn't these days?), was untrademarked and sells a few on a regular basis.
Top of the muffin to ya!
Your voice is so relaxing lol.
Absolutely!
Hahaah, I like his sense of humor and his dry jokes lol
I once made a design of a vibrating text with the words;:"Good, Good, Good Vibrations" and TeePublic eliminated the design and told me that it was a part of a popular song with copy rights. A while later they put it back and I sold 2 tshirts!🤩
Thank you for your attentiveness to the comments on your videos because your replies to the good questions add another whole level of valuable information.
Thanks for all your hard work on these videos. I've watched about a dozen and they are all great.
OK, I've opted you in my "Automatic Thump-up" process, you're content is so cool.
More than 3000 subscribers! Congratulations! Your channel is growining day by day. Happy for you! :)
Thank you! 😃
Thanks for the great information, and I must agree with the last comment.... Your voice is so soothing it's relaxing so thanks for that too...
Look forward to the next one.
Another awesome and incredibly helpful video. Thank you!!
I really like some of your exemples and if that work with no problem that can be the best strathegy that can anyone found on the entire internet, and what that give hope of it is many people do the same thing for exemple you can find on any exemple 100 resultat or more and those artists still work until now without problem, so i'll make a new store to test this strathegy thank you so much
Maybe this is the best video you've ever made so far
You are an inspiration, all the best!
Awesome and good advice. Research, research, research.
Your Videos are so valuable,, and Yes, I have notebooks with lots of ideas 💡 and info on how to create things, Fonts, Keywords, ect... Thank 😊 You for these Videos, You give ideas for designs that I haven't thought of yet!!!
Very helpful thank you!
yeah, really helpful...surely do my research to get started with these, tysm!
Brilliant! LMAO!! Soooo fun! Thank you for the laughter and fun (served with education) everyday😃 NO SOUP FOR YOU!!! One of my all time favorite sayings ever. I use it weekly. (my cats all lift their heads and look at each other saying, there she goes again!!🙄)
Thank you so much💝💝💝💝 You are a gold mine.
Wow...u post amazing content..keep it up .. please make one video on finding the right trend as a new POD creater to get initial sales... Thanks once again 👍
nice strategy
thank you sir
You are amazing! Thank you so much for good job, good videos and important tips! ❤
very helpful and thank you
This is BRILLIANT!
I love this and i love how you explain everything in so much details, so thank so much. I was just wondering if you can't use trademarked words how are you going to tag your works? Because if you don't use that specific movie/tv show name, fans are never going to find it. I saw that on redbubble a lot of artist use trademarks as tags but I'm kind of hesitant about it.
That is definitely a concern - primarily because certain keywords get flagged for further review. I personally look at other similar designs (like in the same genre) and scroll down to the bottom of the page and see their keywords (and use some of them).
@@zenwatercooler thank you so much for answering, your channel has been so helpful!
Great ideas!
Much thanks for your new video. Actually, would it be advisable to tag only the tv show (for example) or is it as well trademarked?
Yes great question - I would say look at your niche and look specifically at the top few products in that niche. Scroll down to the bottom (very bottom) of the page and see what THEY used to tag. And then copy those tags (and add some more!).
This video is pure gold 🥇
Thank you!
Great entertainment value!
Thanks for this video, excellent tips and I understand the concept- it's clever and it makes a lot of sense. However, this will definitely not work on Merch by Amazon- it will not may, get rejected- that's a promise.
Always providing value, so knowledgeable and you can sing…………sort of 👍🏻🇦🇺🇦🇺🤣
Good Tut.
I wanted to ask a separate question that you might be able to answer. If I found a public domain picture can I make some modifications to it, replace person, or object and publish this new design as my own? Great video, thanks for sharing your view.
Great question - yes absolutely, if the image is in the public domain it means that you (and me, and everyone else) owns it. You can use it as is, or you can modify it. No one "owns" it so no one can ever successfully sue you to take it down.
Thank you
Interesting topic here
really helpful
Thnx for all of your hard work.. Really thankyou.. But you said you have so many niches.. Please give me one low competitive niche really struggling to find a good one with demand 😂😂😂😂😂😂
Hi, thanks for unique ideas bro
can you give us your opinion on Top artists they clearly use trademarks.
NICE VIDEO LEARN ALOT
How about pictures or images from movies or MTVs? Like the T-shirt Michael Jackson wore (image of piano keys) in Beat It?
Hello, I accidentally found your channel and absolutely love it! One question though, where on earth can you get a Trademark for $50.00? Last time I looked it was around $300.00. Did you mean to say Copyright? (through the US Copyright office). Thank you.
Hey there - I’m in Canada, so in Canada it is $50 (Cdn) to register a copyright. I have done it and it’s worked for me when slimy people steal my designs (by showing the registration the copied designs have been removed).
@@zenwatercooler Thank you Zen. Yes, we can also do a copyright here in the US for $35 but in the video you said "Trademark is around $50.00" I was curious how you got one for so little. Anyway, it's irrelevant whether we file a Copyright or an expensive Trademark because scammers will rip us off anyway they can. As soon as they receive a Cease and Desist letter, they'll just post our work on another one of their sites. Oh well, that's the nature of the Internet. Keep up the good work. Your teaching style is terrific.
Can you explain publicity rights as well
About the no guarantee thing. What if someone copyrights or trademarks something after you've already published an item? I don't worry too much about designs but I don't want to have to change my business name, currently it is not trademarked for clothing, one Co has it for furniture in the US and someone in Africa has it for Wine. I had a business license in that name but moved to Las Vegas, so having to obtain a new one.
If you publish a design and then someone trademarks it, it's possible that you would get a strike from Redbubble or Merch after that fact. It's frustrating and rare but it does happen. There's nice (long) article about unregistered trademarks here: www.justia.com/intellectual-property/trademarks/unregistered-trademarks/
Clever!
So it doesn't infringe upon their trademark if you use a popular phrase in a song word for word? As long as you don't use any images or logos that may suggest that you're clearly referencing them?
It would be a judgement call (by whoever owns the rights, they COULD complain) but generally speaking, song titles and phrases are not trademarked. I would however just run the phrase through a site like Justia just in case.
I wasn’t aware you could do this. You can indirectly take advantage of things like this, even though people would know what you are referring to? Do you know if Merch-by-Amazon allows this? I like the idea but would be worried about losing my account.
Well I can't speak on behalf of Merch, but I can say I have definitely seen these designs used by Merch (for example, "Sweep the Leg" is all over Amazon. If the phrase is NOT trademarked and if you are NOT using anything that resembles the intellectual property... then they don't really have a reason to remove it.
I notice most of those examples you pulled up on Redbubble do NOT have the show/band name in the title or description. Would it be a violation if the seller did that? Also, what about "Seinfeld" in the tag of the "Serenity Now" shirt, for example. Can we put famous IP names/trademarks in our tags?
Hey there - I would not recommend using trademarked names like “Seinfeld” in your tag. Workaround: have the Redbubble tag say “serenity now” and then create a Pinterest pin - and in the Pin description, use Seinfeld and other keywords. So people searching on Pinterest for Seinfeld will see the pin.
Thanks man it was so helpful.
I have a Q ; can I use the name of the movie, song ,etc in my tags or Title ? Also can I use a Character name like Costanza for example?
I hope you can respond to me and again thanks
It's tricky - ultimately Redbubble or Teepublic or whichever POD site you are using, they hold all the rules. So I can't say that in every case they will do this or that. I would say that in the case of Seinfeld - "Costanza" is a last name specifically associated with the show, so I would not recommend it. ("These pretzels making me thirsty" on the other hand is just an idea or a phrase - those are not generally copyrighted).
My teepublic account got banned..I had just started out,and had about 20 designs...mostly mine and some with pod license...They never gave an explanation...And didn't answer my queries...Any idea what went wrong? Can I start with a new mail ID?
Yes you can start with a new email - if you have a gmail account, you can even use that email but just put a period in it. So for example, if you use SSSS@gmail.com, and it gets banned, you can use SS.SS@gmail.com (with a period in the email). It's the same email but Teepublic will think it is a new email.
I'm sorry; I'm still a little confused. I can search phrases from shows and movies and lyrics from famous songs all day long that aren't trademarked but are copyrighted. You being a writer of 20 years would know. As in your example, wouldn't putting "no soup for you" on a T-shirt violate a copyrighted phrase? Also, would you use Seinfeld in your tags? Not that I intend to use this, but it's just an example. would you use the trademarked inspiration source in your tags?
Yes it's a good question and no offense taken - copyright and trademark are two different things. Copyright is literally the right to copy it; so if you had "No Soup For You" on a t-shirt, I am not legally allowed to exactly copy that design. It's a grey area if you can copy it and change "something" - a font, the size, the placements, etc. In Canada (which is where I reside) a registered copyright extends to "variants" - but again that is a grey area. For trademarks, the question is would "No Soup For You" with Seinfeld font & a picture of a soup guy confuse a "normal" customer into thinking this is a Seinfeld-related item If the answer is yes... it is confusing... then it would violate Seinfeld's trademark (either the phrase "No Soup For You" or the Seinfeld show in general). So this sort of stuff definitely keeps the lawyers busy!
@@zenwatercooler okay, thank you. I have a design I want to use that is literally the title words of an extremely famous song, are you saying I can put those words on a t-shirt since I am not copying to make another song? POD typically doesn't make enough to even justify paying an IP attorney.
I'm wondering how do you set up the tags and descriptions for these sorts of designs, since we probably can't mention what they reference?
That's a really great point. Typically I will look on Google (not Redbubble) for a Redbubble design that is close (so maybe the same movie, etc). Because it is on Google, it obviously is indexed for search. Then I check out that Redbubble design and specifically the tags they used - because it is up on Redbubble AND indexed for search, that means those tags are usable and not flagged. It's a guess but so far it has worked!
@@zenwatercooler hmmm . . . Redbubble allows a lot of things they shouldn’t though
If I find a saying that is trademarked, am I allowed to use half of it if I change the other half to something different?
Hey there - I am not a lawyer but I can say that it would be a judgement call (legally speaking) as to whether or not the new phrase infringes. There's no "half" rule; the rule is that the new phrase needs to not infringe on the old phrase. And that's a judgement call. I have personally found that changing a single word so it doesn't match the trademarked saying will sometimes work!
@@zenwatercooler Thanks.
Set theory ....so what your saying is x ∈ A ∩ B and we want to maximise x...got it!
Sir, Can i Use a Word Which is ready Trademarked in a Sentence?
if we use that word in our daily life like daughter or coffee or black coffee that is not a trademark but we don't that works much that will be in the grey area and it's to risky to use it
but sure you can use that word in another sentence which is not a trademark but that work should not be a trademark like for example virgin
Lots of good stuff here, thanks! But, can you actually get a trademark for $50? I thought they were hundreds, so, if there’s a cheaper way, I’d love to know how to do it. I have one design I’m hesitant to put out there because I think it will sell big and I just know it’s going to be copied.
Yes great question - In my mind I was referring to filing a copyright (in Canada) which is $50. Not exactly a trademark but it would at least give you clout with Etsy or Redbubble to say “I am the registered owner of this work of art”. www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/cipointernet-internetopic.nsf/eng/wr00091.html
I wanted to make something that ties on with "another one bites the dust" this is kool.
So .. the NFL logo with the characters replaced with D&D and the football and stars replaced with dice would be bad?
It might be... if you were selling on Shopify I would argue "parody" but for a third-party site like Redbubble... I wouldn't risk it personally. (Great idea by the way!)
@@zenwatercooler thanks. I have it in both Redbubble (my only design currently) and Etsy (one of many)
And I was thinking parody
My i ask aquestion?
I want to start a clothing brand named (Lazy Warrior) but when i check on justia i saw a brand named (Lazy J ranch wear) and it also a clothing brand. Am i infringed the trademark because the word "Lazy"?
Btw love your vids
I personally think Lazy Warrior is not the same as the ranch - I don’t think you run the risk of having an average consumer confuse the two. However, full disclaimer: I am not a trademark lawyer. But, the two names certainly do not look the same to me.
@@zenwatercooler ok big thx
@@mrlpkimchified they not even related lol duh .
Do you have a "how to trademark" video?
I do not - trademarking is country-specific and niche-specific so I don't have a universal video for it. Typically you would need to trademark your brand in relation to a specific type of product (like apparel or mugs, or tires, or home improvement, etc). That's how "Hulk" air compressors can exist alongside "Hulk" comic books. It's definitely complicated.
Absolutely consumed by your content! Amazing stuff! Question: Can you use the name of the person/band/etc on a t-shirt? Ie: "Def does not smell like teen spirit. ~ Nirvana" Is that legal?
It’s a great question - it ultimately is a judgement call on whoever owns the platform (like Redbubble can decide it is infringing on Nirvana and pull it). If you are selling on your own platform, then ultimately it is whatever you and your printer think is not infringing. You can argue that it is parody, which generally allows use of the tradrmarked images (like Garbage Pail Kids stickers for example or Saturday Night Live commercials parodying real products). So yes, “doesn’t smell like teen spirit” generally would NOT confuse the average consumer. But ultimately it would be the decision of the platform owner (yet another benefit to selling on your own website vs. Redbubble).
@@zenwatercooler Thanks!!
@@zenwatercooler Thanks!!
i think is still risky to do any of these and it might work for some time, for some shops but sooner or later some shops will receive copyright strike and get their shop closed down. It happens more and more often now a days
What do you think about using parts, lines, sentences etc.. of greatest hits lyrics as plain text pod? Or certain famous sentences of Golden Globe winner or Oscar winner movies as plain text pod? Copyright, trademarked or grey area? A pretty exciting video!
Great Video! Do you know that in Australia, a butt means a bun 🤣... by the way, I have understood tha the whole script for a movie or series, including lyrics of songs are copyrighted...So, actually, you can not use them either... am I right?
I did not know that! I am definitely not a legal expert (and the laws are different in every country). Big picture - words are just words. So you can't use "John Lennon" for example, but you COULD have a t-shirt that says "PAUL and JOHN". They are just words. So I would say just do a search on trademark - like for example, the phrase "Paperback Writer" existed before the Beatles, so it depends on HOW you are using it.
I have a question. Let's say you publish a t-shirt with a famous quote, like your examples from Seinfeld or Karate Kid.
Would you in that instance put a "Seinfeld" tag in the description, or would that be dumb?
It’s a great question - Some keywords get flagged and some don’t. I personally have done exactly what you are suggesting - so if the design itself is not infringing, the design might get reviewed but ultimately allowed. Redbubble is a bit of a mystery.
@@zenwatercooler Thank you for the answer.
@Jord Vorenholt It's best to not use any words in a tag that is trademarked. You will be opening yourself up to being banned by the site and/or sued by the owner of the trademark. Trademark owners are obligated to keep others from using their trademark in order to retain their trademark. Always research trademarks to stay safe.
I love your video, and all your content, but I'm afraid that the new rules and sweeps are making it impossible to do this. For instance, I was rejected for copyright on a Han Swolo design on merch. It is not trademarked. It did have a similar font to star wars, but it had a barbell on it and no meta reference to Star wars what-so-ever. (I am in tier 10, so I'm assuming it was reviewed by a person.) I'm pretty careful, and I had several rejections in tier 10. Now I'm terrified to play off of anything. I would love to submit more designs that I think are ok, but I'm already afraid of them taking my account, or sweeping it later. Apparently politics is a minefield now too. I honestly feel a bit defeated before I'm even getting started. It seems pretty futile to only make designs of hearts and rainbows. Any advice?
This is such a great question. Basically we are saying that the design is LEGAL but ultimately Redbubble, Teepublic or Merch doesn’t want to publish it. I agree, it is super frustrating. We have a couple of options: you could avoid anything even remotely close to any trademarked property, you could reach out to the artist support and ask why the design was removed (long shot) or you go the route of Etsy or Shopify and work with Printful directly. I am doing a vid about this option because I agree, it is super frustrating.
Just wanted to add - your design MIGHT be too “on the nose” if it says “Han Swolo”. That’s really close. A little more subtle would be a shirt that says “ACTUALLY, I SHOT FIRST.” Because there is nothing name-wise to associate it with Star Wars. But obvious to Star Wars fans, For example.
LOL singing, thanks
My design is not among the first 100 🙄🤔🤣🤣🤣
Redbubble?
Yea and ?
but even using you're "killing me smalls" alone is a 100% copyright
for me I won't do it I can add a work on it or something to make it funny for example
Did anyone tell you that you sound like Saul Goodman? or at least you talk like he does
Your singing was not that bad, actually. 🤷
Shameful