Swipe File 2: Captain America Boogaloo
Okay, so I've seen this for years now, down the street from where I live, and every time I thought "damn I wish I had a camera"
Today I was futzing around with google and found the image that looked like what I'd seen all those times. And then I got my camera out.
I blacked out the guy's phone number but otherwise the images are unadulterated.
and why do you ask do I even care, about some little auto shop that I've never been to or know anyone who has been there or works there, have no connection to it at all? Because even though I've seen this for the last four years living here, along with "wish I had a camera" I was always thinking "someone just ignorant, it's not my job to go in there and tell them to lose the art before they get caught and sued because they're ignorant of trademark law". It's not my job to go around policing other people's dumb business decisions.
But when I went to research movers for my upcoming move I noticed that their ad is the ONLY one that does not have a picture of their storefront in their ads, any of them, even their Yellow Page listing. Seriously, the only one. And that got me thinking: who would not include a picture of their own storefront in their advertising? When all their competitors are loaded up with pictures of smiling employees in front of their signs, and the owner and his kids, and whatnot? Who does that?
People who know that they are not supposed to be using that artwork, that logo, that image. That's who.
They know it's wrong. I mean come on, they used the actual logo from the comic and put a black bar over the word "Captain" fer cryin' out loud.
Stupid in itself isn't a crime but man, some crimes are stupid, especially when you're located in one of the busiest intersections in a big city. And yes, trademark infringement is a crime. So, yeah.
Today I was futzing around with google and found the image that looked like what I'd seen all those times. And then I got my camera out.
I blacked out the guy's phone number but otherwise the images are unadulterated.
and why do you ask do I even care, about some little auto shop that I've never been to or know anyone who has been there or works there, have no connection to it at all? Because even though I've seen this for the last four years living here, along with "wish I had a camera" I was always thinking "someone just ignorant, it's not my job to go in there and tell them to lose the art before they get caught and sued because they're ignorant of trademark law". It's not my job to go around policing other people's dumb business decisions.
But when I went to research movers for my upcoming move I noticed that their ad is the ONLY one that does not have a picture of their storefront in their ads, any of them, even their Yellow Page listing. Seriously, the only one. And that got me thinking: who would not include a picture of their own storefront in their advertising? When all their competitors are loaded up with pictures of smiling employees in front of their signs, and the owner and his kids, and whatnot? Who does that?
People who know that they are not supposed to be using that artwork, that logo, that image. That's who.
They know it's wrong. I mean come on, they used the actual logo from the comic and put a black bar over the word "Captain" fer cryin' out loud.
Stupid in itself isn't a crime but man, some crimes are stupid, especially when you're located in one of the busiest intersections in a big city. And yes, trademark infringement is a crime. So, yeah.