If you don’t know, now you know
Our digital world is constantly changing to better serve us. Are you keeping up? If you’re having trouble staying on top of the latest news, launches, or revised regulations, stay with me. I promise to make it short and sweet so you can get back to living in the present.
Break Me Off a Piece…
Raise your hand if you can sing this jingle without hesitation! Believe it or not, this is a great example of brand recognition.
By hearing a simple tune, seeing packaging and shape, we consumers are able to identify brands easier. Not only do trademarks help us recognize our favorite products and ensure we are getting the same quality with every purchase, they also protect the identity through business rights. Trademarking an item legally registers your product and others are not allowed to use the trademark for a different product. You might be asking yourself what this has to do with KitKats.
Well, the beloved UK chocolate bar has been battling with Kvikk Lunsj (a Norwegian four-fingered chocolate biscuit) over the similar shape/concept. This case was brought to the European Court of Justice where a final decision was made. “Ultimately, the most recent European Court of Justice (ECJ) decision came down to sufficient distinctiveness. Companies can apply for a domestic trademark at their national intellectual property office, but how would sufficient distinctiveness be proved when applying for an EU-wide trademark? An applicant must show that the mark is commonly recognized throughout the European Union, under the EU Directive 2015/2435.” I think we can all agree that one brand is significantly more recognizable across the globe than the other. CASE CLOSED!
Time Well Spent?
Often wonder how much time you spend scrolling, tagging, and liking pictures on Facebook and Instagram? You are about to find out with the help of a new tool called the activity dashboard. Facebook introduced the new feature to help people monitor app usage throughout the day in hopes that people use their time on the app to be intentional, positive, and inspiring.
“It’s our responsibility to talk openly about how time online impacts people — and we take that responsibility seriously. These new tools are an important first step, and we are committed to continuing our work to foster safe, kind and supportive communities for everyone,” writes Facebook’s director of research, David Ginsberg, and Instagram’s product management director, Ameet Ranadive, on Facebook’s news blog. To uncover the truth about your social media usage, you can find the activity dashboard on the user’s settings page. It’s safe to say our THM social team will have ALARMING usage results. #yikes
50 Years of Golden Arches
America has been Ba da ba ba ba lovin’ Big Macs for 50 years now! The fast-food chain’s most famous burger turned 50 last week and one thing became clear… never mess with a good thing. In 1968 McDonald’s launched the soon-to-be iconic double-decker sandwich that consisted of “two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions, and a sesame seed bun” and has not changed the recipe since. To celebrate the birth of the Big Mac, the burger chain gave away more than 6 million MacCoins at 14,000 locations. These collectible coins can either sit on your shelf for the years to come or you can redeem one for a free Big Mac until the end of the year.
The Amazing ($1 trillion) Race – UPDATE
Apple has become the world’s first publicly traded company valued at one-trillion dollars! We discussed the fierce competition a couple weeks ago when Amazon had the potential to spoil this well-deserved milestone – however, the technology powerhouse beat them to the bank. Apple shares have risen by 2.7% and reached a record-breaking $207.05 on Friday which puts them up by 22% from last year.
