Fight Or 'Flight': Testing Trademark Power In Film

Law360, New York (December 17, 2012, 2:22 PM EST) -- Over the last couple of weeks, the release by Paramount Pictures of a new film, Flight, has stirred some discussion over the issue of product placement and trademarks vis-à-vis First Amendment rights in the entertainment industry. Some commentators and intellectual property experts have pondered over whether Anheuser-Busch's and Spirits International BV's demands that their registered brand names, Budweiser and Stolichnaya, respectively, be removed from the film could result in a successful lawsuit against Paramount Pictures Inc. based on violation of section 43 of the Lanham Act. This article will evaluate the potential for a viable lawsuit by these liquor companies in having their trademarks removed or blurred from the film in question....

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