Can a city, town etc... bar you from using your trademarked logo or logotype?

[SignProPlus-Chip]

Serious question, and I need sources if you have info. Now I know color changes are common, so this question does not concern that aspect. What I am referring to here is the core design of your logo.

Does any municipality have the right to bar you from utilizing your logo? Can they really tell you that you have to change the font style of your logotype?

Example, could they tell McDonalds to change there font to Arial or Times Roman?

Can local sign code actually force you to change your trademarked logo. Things like removing detail or simplifying a logo?

Example, Telling Starbucks the mermaids arms have too many lines?

 

[Moze]

I've dealt with municipalities that have stipulated that logos cannot be used and that only certain colors can be used - regardless of the business, the size of the business, etc. There was one here in Texas that RadioShack wanted to go into and they couldn't use their logo or their colors and they had to use a specified font. Not sure that fully answers your questions, but there are definitely some sticklers out there.

 

[Billct2]

Almost none of those types of restrictions are legal...but who has the time & money to fight them? Contact the USSC they have lots of info on this stuff.

 

[SignProPlus-Chip]

Bill,

Thanks for the tip, I found this on their website:


The Lanham Act

§1121. Jurisdiction of Federal courts; State and local requirements that registered trademarks be altered or displayed differently; prohibition (b)

No State or other jurisdiction of the United States or any political subdivision or any agency thereof may require alteration of a registered mark, or require that additional trademarks, service marks, trade names, or corporate names that may be associated with or incorporated into the registered mark be displayed in the mark in a manner differing from the display of such additional trademarks, service marks, trade names, or corporate names contemplated by the registered mark as exhibited in the certificate of registration issued by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

Almost none of those types of restrictions are legal...but who has the time & money to fight them? Contact the USSC they have lots of info on this stuff.

 

[brycesteiner]

Out of curiosity, why did you ask?

 

[Zx360]

Just recently a sign went up locally for a very large bank chain. I recognized the name but the logo looked odd to me. In talking to the other company who did it the city made them change the logo and colors after they had already built the multi million dollar building... The bank gave in and changed the colors and logo for this location.

its hideous...

 

[SignProPlus-Chip]

Because knowledge is power.

Out of curiosity, why did you ask?

 

[Pat Whatley]

So according to the Langham Act they can't tell you to change your logo but they can tell you that you can't use it if it doesn't conform.

Sounds about typical.

 

[GAC05]

It looks like even if you have McDonald's level financial resources you may not win.......



http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...nt-s-not-fast-food-giant-s-unusual-store.html

I'm lovin' it???

wayne k
guam usa

 

[Billct2]

Even for McDonalds it might not be worth the effort/money/bad publicity to fight it and once you've made enemies of the town they can make your life miserable.
For McDonals or businesses like them that have an incredible name recognition/customer base having to kowtwow to the architectural review board isn't
as damaging as it can be to the small business who needs their presence loudly proclaimed. And as we know the most cost effective way is through their sign. Signs that are
made invisible through these kinds of ordinances stifles the free speech of commerce. I did a sign for a customer in a town with incredibles restrictive sign codes. I have driven by the plaza they are in many times and I never knew there was a Staples and Starbucks in there, much less any og the other smaller local stores. How much business have those places lost because they are invisible?

 

[brycesteiner]

Because knowledge is power.

I was just wondering if you had a direct problem with a municipality.

 

[TimToad]

Even for McDonalds it might not be worth the effort/money/bad publicity to fight it and once you've made enemies of the town they can make your life miserable.
For McDonals or businesses like them that have an incredible name recognition/customer base having to kowtwow to the architectural review board isn't
as damaging as it can be to the small business who needs their presence loudly proclaimed. And as we know the most cost effective way is through their sign. Signs that are
made invisible through these kinds of ordinances stifles the free speech of commerce. I did a sign for a customer in a town with incredibles restrictive sign codes. I have driven by the plaza they are in many times and I never knew there was a Staples and Starbucks in there, much less any og the other smaller local stores. How much business have those places lost because they are invisible?

That reminds me of a ski trip I once took to Stowe, Vermont. It was very obvious that the local hand carved signmakers had enormous influence on how the sign code was put together. Even the Mickey D's had hand carved, gold leafed signs all over the property. An approach like that obviously can't work everywhere, but those folks had codified a lifetime of work for themselves.

 

[Billct2]

Yep, that's Jay Cook's hometown and Sparky Potters up there too, along with several other great dimensional sign makers But if I remember correctly from a converastion I had with Jay, the regulations are restrictive on size but carved/dimensional style is more encouraged than enforced. It's a good example of how really high quality work can help define the "sign culture" of an area.

 

[TimToad]

Yep, that's Jay Cook's hometown and Sparky Potters up there too, along with several other great dimensional sign makers But if I remember correctly from a converastion I had with Jay, the regulations are restrictive on size but carved/dimensional style is more encouraged than enforced. It's a good example of how really high quality work can help define the "sign culture" of an area.

All I know is that the influence of those masters of our craft being involved in the process was evident everywhere. The handful of non-compliant or amateur produced signs stuck out like sore thumbs, degrading the image and appeal of the short sighted businesses who thought they were saving a buck or getting away with something.

 

[SignProPlus-Chip]

After exhaustive reading on the Lanham act and supporting case law, this is what I have gleaned.

The courts are in conflict, but only whereas color is concerned. It seems a request to alter color can be considered reasonable for aesthetic reasons, hence the turquoise arches of Mc'D's... but the mark of trade itself, MAY NOT BE ALTERED. Powers that be cannot say it would look better with only one arch.

The Lanham Act is CRYSTAL clear that the core design of the mark itself may not be altered. This is the one bit that everyone has agreed on in previous cases. So nobody can say, well we will permit it, but only if you change the font of your logo to Comic Sans.

Yes, a municipality can disallow a mark of trade usage altogether, but they cannot apply it with disparity. In other words if they don't want it because they do not like the design, that dog won't fight. Not if they already freely allow other business to use and display their mark of trade. Certain municipalities do not allow display of logos etc..., it's already on the books and part of their sign code, so NO BUSINESS has it in their jurisdiction. If display is freely allowed, they would have to support it being disallowed by other criteria beside aesthetics. For example if the content was lewd etc...

 

[Desert_Signs]

It looks like even if you have McDonald's level financial resources you may not win.......

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...nt-s-not-fast-food-giant-s-unusual-store.html

I'm lovin' it???

wayne k
guam usa

Don't believe everything you read on the internet. That McDonald's has been open since 1993. The franchisee, the town, and McDonalds all agreed to go with the turqouise logo just to be different. If McDonald's had forced the issue, it probably would have been just fine to be yellow. Sedona, AZ is a different sort of town....

 

[Rick]

A municipality may not be able to restrict a trademark,
but a private property owner can. I have designed plenty
of sign programs that restrict some usage of a trademark
for sign uniformity on certain sign types, or complete retail/business
centers that use a project typeface as requested by the
property owner.

 

[thinksigns]

When the local Apple Store opened in a suburb here, they initially would not allow the Apple logo because of the town's sign ordinance against pictures of fruit on signs.

http://www.macworld.com/article/1019307/germantown.html

 

[BIG EASY DOES IT]

I know if the signs are directional signs for traffic that state if a business is open or closed during construction or something like that. They have the right to tell you you can't use logos. and you have to use Highway Fonts and standardized designs.

 

[Marlene]

Yep, that's Jay Cook's hometown and Sparky Potters up there too, along with several other great dimensional sign makers But if I remember correctly from a converastion I had with Jay, the regulations are restrictive on size but carved/dimensional style is more encouraged than enforced. It's a good example of how really high quality work can help define the "sign culture" of an area.

we have many places like that in the state. also are the historical city signs that are in keeping with the overall loo of the area. we are a pretty state with pretty little towns. it can be a pain to work with the zoning an planning in those pretty little town but the overall result is what you see when you come here.