Comments on: The Quick 10: 10 Common Words That Used To Be Trademarked

By: Melanie

Melanie — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 16:24:00 +0000

Aspirin.

By: Katie D.

Katie D. — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 15:37:15 +0000

FRISBEE

By: Florida

Florida — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 14:56:17 +0000

Jello is certainly not a “common word” and is still trademarked.

I remember some years back a band named “Green Jello” was sued by Kraft and forced to change their name to “Green Jelly” and re-release their album under the new name. This probably had something to do with the band’s slogan: “Green Jello Sucks!”

By: Rachel

Rachel — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 13:08:54 +0000

The trademarked term “zipper” actually has nothing to do with your pants or jackets. Zippers/Zips were rubber overshoes produced by Goodrich (tires, anyone?), and worn over your regular shoes when it was raining.

The University of Akron are The Zips, a name chosen in a contest. The student who suggested it did so on account of seeing those Zips on her fellow students all the time in the dreary Ohio winter/spring.

That is, by far, the only interesting thing about the University of Akron.

{Go Kent!}

By: Mike

Mike — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 12:21:23 +0000

JELL-O

By: Steve

Steve — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 07:19:56 +0000

How about a common word which is now a trademark. Both DC and Marvel jointly own the trademarked term “superhero”.

By: Kenyon Colloran

Kenyon Colloran — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 05:47:50 +0000

It’s also really interesting living in a foreign country where they do things so much differently than us. I’ve basically stopped referring to things by their company names cause that’s not how the Japanese people I talk to do it. It’s become tissue, copy and so on for me now,

By: Jenny

Jenny — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 04:55:46 +0000

We discussed this in a journalism class I had. Sometimes trademarked names are used so commonly they lose their legal protection.

others are: yo-yo, bikini, and brassiere.

Jell-o, Band Aid, and Kleenex are still trademark names, not common words.

By: v

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 03:06:13 +0000

Aspirin was also a trademark of the Bayer Co. until after WWII when the USA stripped them of their copyrights and patents.

By: Seth

Seth — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 02:16:21 +0000

Popsicle, rather.