Tag Archives: Indianapolis Public Library

Five Trademark Concerns When Rebranding: Netflix – Qwikster Edition

19 Monday Sep 2011

Posted by in Branding, Intellectual Property, Social Media, Trademark

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I woke this morning to learn that Netflix’s CEO had decided to fall on his own sword and rebrand Netflix’s DVD-by-mail feature (otherwise known as Netflix’s primary feature or the feature that made Netflix all of it’s money) to…wait for it…Qwikster. After a botched price hike this summer that alienated hundreds of thousands of subscribers, Netflix has decided to stick it’s thumb in the eye of all remaining loyal DVD-to-mail subscribers by leaving them with the new, unimproved Qwikster. I picture the captain of a luxury cruiser herding his passengers into old lifeboats, setting them adrift in the ocean and then cruising off smirking with the dinner buffet all to himself. Presumably, this is an effort to sell off the DVD-by-mail business and position Netflix to sail into a future of downloaded content without being encumbered by a logistically-difficult “by-mail” business model.

Full disclosure: I’ve been a Netflix fan since the beginning. I’ve spent more time than I care to calculate  watching discs from Netflix (2,091 movies rated). I’ve learned, laughed and loved with Netflix. I even used to own Netflix stock back during the days when I dabbled in the market. I’ve also been a bit of a Netflix evangelist at times as the company fought off Blockbuster and Redbox.

And now Netflix has given customers yet another reason to explore possible alternatives. Since I wrote a blog post about the Indianapolis Public Library’s rebrand a few weeks back, I thought it appropriate to analyze how Netflix’s rebrand meets the guidelines I set forth in that post.

1. At a bare minimum, do a Google search for similar trademarks already in use.

To Netflix’s credit, the Qwikster name seems to be relatively unencumbered from a trademark confusion perspective. There are 3 registrations for “Quickster” but in seemingly unrelated fields (Sports training equipment, namely, quick-assembly portable multi-sport practice nets; Jewelry, horological and chronometric instruments, namely, chronometers, watches and parts thereof; Telephone Indexes).

Of course, it could be that it’s such an awful name that every business with any marketing sense has stayed away. That being said, availability of a trademark is an increasingly rare trait so Netflix may have jumped on the first available name on their list. Time will tell whether that’s a smart approach to rebranding. However, as Item 2 will discuss, while potentially available for use in commerce, the mark may not be as ready for marketing purposes as initially thought.

Also, somewhere else you should check…Urban Dictionary. Have you considered all public connotations before adopting a new trademark?

2. Claim your domain name(s), Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc. BEFORE you announce the rebrand.

Although no business seems to be using Qwikster, a few of the major social media accounts are already claimed by individuals. Twitter, often a first point of contact between a trademark and the public, bears the following profile pic:

Awesome pic? Yeah, kinda. But is it the image you want connected with your new business as you attempt to convince subscribers to accept not one, but two separate credit card payments each month? Doubtful. If Netflix’s plan is to buy this Twitter account (such a sale is prohibited by Twitter, by the way), I’ll suggest that it would have been accomplished much easier before making a rebrand announcement late on a Sunday night.

YouTube was claimed back in 1996 by an individual in Singapore. I bet somewhere in Singapore (set to overtake Vegas as the world’s second largest gambling hub) they’ve already started a pool on how long before his account is “reclaimed.”

Run a NameChk search before every rebrand…why wouldn’t you?

3. If you’re going to rebrand, then REBRAND!

Netflix is blowing my mind here in a whole different way than the Indianapolis Public Library rebrand. The CEO’s late Sunday night, meandering, apologetic blog post hints at the reasons for rebranding but certainly omits key details (drunkenness, plans for a future sale, etc.) As such, legions of current, loyal subscribers are stuck with the awful rebrand while prospective, future customers that don’t yet exist waltz away with the prominent Netflix mark (and NFLX stock quote).

Did I mention that each customer will now receive two credit card charges per month (one from Netflix, one from Qwikster) instead of just one? Somehow I suspect that benefits somebody (corporations are people, my friend!) other than the Netflix customer.

4. Always use a proper trademark notice (“TM” for common law rights).

Netflix/Qwikster isn’t using a proper trademark notice. Presumably because the CEO made this website late on a Sunday night and neglected to contact his trademark attorney before announcing a major rebrand.

5. When budget permits (ballpark $800-$1200), seek federal registration, thus allowing you to use the registration symbol, ®.

Netflix has the budget to be proactive about trademark protection but they certainly don’t appear to have acted wisely in this situation. There has been no federal trademark filing as of yet (even if Netflix won’t be using the Qwikster name for awhile, it should still file an intent-to-use application). I’m expecting there will be a Qwikster trademark application filed today or as soon as Netflix’s attorneys get to the office and realize what has happened. Otherwise, Netflix is playing fast and loose with trademark law in a way that can only come back to haunt it.

Thoughts? Like the new name? Hate it? Done with Netflix?

[UPDATE: Every rebrand should include a NameChk search. Hat tip to Chris Theisen.]

[UPDATE 10/10/11: Netflix Abandons Qwikster DVD Plan. I wonder if it was because they couldn’t get the Twitter account. Long live Netflix. Long live Qwikster.]

Five Trademark Concerns When Rebranding

29 Monday Aug 2011

Posted by in Branding, Indianapolis, Intellectual Property, Trademark

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Indianapolis’ library (formerly known as the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library) has decided to rebrand itself, dropping “Marion County” from the name. With the Indy metropolitan area growing to fill just about all of Marion County, the new, shorter name makes sense from a marketing perspective. It was reportedly focus-group tested over the last year and the decision made based on how people most often reference the library.

From a trademark perspective, however, the Library’s rebrand raises a few concerns that should be instructive to all entities considering a switch to a new name or logo:

1. At a bare minimum, do a Google search for similar trademarks (and acronyms if applicable) already in use.

Focus groups are a nice touch if you’ve got the budget, but a Google search is free. There is no other Indianapolis Public Library and thus little concern about confusion with the name itself (other than self-imposed confusion from using multiple marks…see below). However, the acronym “IPL” is already widely known locally to refer to Indianapolis Power & Light, our town’s other source of enlightenment. Whether the focus group was asked about acronym association is unknown. Either way, we’ll see whether Indy is big enough for two IPLs.

2. Claim your domain name(s), Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc. BEFORE you announce the rebrand.

Make sure you’re not focus-grouping your company into real world relevance at the expense of online oblivion. Domain names and social media handles are valuable and that value needs to be accounted for in the decision to rebrand. Here is IPL’s current suite of Twitter accounts:

Of the four IMCPL accounts, only the “readers” equivalent is available for IPL. The other three are claimed, one certified:

I won’t belabor the point by expanding on other social media platforms (The Library has facebook.com/IMCPL and the Indian Premier League has /IPL) but all of them should be proactively addressed in a rebranding effort. Obviously different handles can be chosen but that puts you one step further away from reconnecting with existing fans/followers. Also consider all of the broken links that will be created when you drop your old accounts. Consider how you’ll effectively communicate the rebrand to your existing followers. To smooth the transition, a successful rebrand needs to be accompanied by a continuous monitoring of the old mark and online properties. Congrats, you now have twice as much trademark enforcement responsibility.

If you don’t claim your accounts before rebranding, you’re leaving them out there for cyberprofiteers who can quickly and easily grab them and then demand a king’s ransom. “First come, first served” is the name of the game for most social media platforms, regardless of trademark rights.

3. If you’re going to rebrand, then REBRAND!

Due to budget constraints, IPL officials are introducing the new name and logo in a piecemeal fashion as materials are needed rather than a wholesale change all at once. The descriptive nature of the trademark may help prevent customer confusion, but using two brands at once is typically a sure-fire way to confuse your own customers. Once you’ve decided to rebrand, be swift and decisive.

See what’s going on below? Someone obviously went in to add the new logo but didn’t change the Page Name, About or General Information. Budget is no excuse for that. Instead, it winds up looking to an outsider like an entity that can’t get their trademark straight. If you can’t get your trademark right, don’t expect others to do so. Also, as discussed above, notice the Library is still tied to facebook.com/imcpl and probably always will be as Facebook doesn’t allow simple username switches. That or start from scratch and lose all prior content and those 3,736 followers.

4. Always use a proper trademark notice (“TM” for common law rights).

This is the same advice as for any entity with a trademark they want to protect. In the excitement of the rebrand, don’t overlook sound trademark practices.

5. When budget permits (ballpark $800-$1200), seek federal registration, thus allowing you to use the registration symbol, ®.

Preferably you’d like to file before or shortly after the rebrand. Build the cost of a federal trademark application into your rebrand budget and spare yourself many headaches down the road. Being a geographically descriptive mark, the IML will have trouble obtaining federal registration. However, IPL did register both its name and logo in Indiana. (Those state registration certificates need an update, huh? Todd Rokita?)

Keep these guidelines in mind for your next rebrand. Marketing and trademark concerns should be considered simultaneously if you want to truly evaluate the impact of your new name and logo.

[UPDATE 9/1/11 – For charitable entities, don’t forget to rebrand your Foundation simultaneously with all of the same concerns as above. See images below.]