maninthedark30 Posted April 8, 2008 Share Posted April 8, 2008 I am pretty sure I know the answer to this, but is it okay to use names of trademarked entities in lyrics without any kind of infringement? For example, say I had a line that says (and this is super generic): 'I like to drink Pepsi Cola, and Diet Coke tastes great, too' Anybody know for sure? I'd love to download a few pdf's from the copyright office site and thumb through all the legal verbiage for hours on end until I might come across a vague answer, but umm... that's not gonna happen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beer Moth Posted April 8, 2008 Share Posted April 8, 2008 Freedom of speech? There must be a zillion poems that quote names. Problems arise only if you're being defammatory,me thinks. Me thinks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subtonic Posted April 8, 2008 Share Posted April 8, 2008 I can't send you a link to set your mind at ease 100%, but here's what I remember from when I used to study this stuff. Titles are fair game. That's why it's alright for you to see so many songs with the same names. They are not protected. It is completely ok for you to use a trademarked term in your work. The trademark only exists to prevent other people from using the mark in the same industry. It's a different beast than copyright. Defmmatory isn't a problem either. Pepsi has no grounds (in the US) to sue you over your fictional song "Wow, Pepsi Sure Tastes Like Ass." That's track 83 on my next album "I'm A Coke Man - And I Don't Mean The Drink". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maninthedark30 Posted April 8, 2008 Author Share Posted April 8, 2008 Cool, thanks guys... I just wanted to double check. I have an old fun project I'm working on and one of the songs' lyrics are sort of just a stream of random words and phrases which include a few product names like this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pantomimeHorse Posted April 8, 2008 Share Posted April 8, 2008 I think, if Billy Joel can get away with it, you can, too ! ! ! ! 8) - C Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m-m-m Posted April 8, 2008 Share Posted April 8, 2008 .... "Wow, Pepsi Sure Tastes Like Ass."..... LMFAO "And the Grammy for best new fictional song goes to ...." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subtonic Posted April 8, 2008 Share Posted April 8, 2008 It sure would be amazing if a song like that got an award. Maybe big companies lobby the record industry to keep songs that feature their brands from being popular unless they're positive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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