"How about we alienate our fans?" - Ford takes a page from the RIAA playbook

[RSS Robot]

Filed under: Time Warp, Etc., Ford, Jaguar


The internet has made it incredibly easy for groups of enthusiasts to communicate and collaborate. Gearheads benefit a lot from this. It's easy to share pictures of our beloved rides, and with services like CafePress, you can even get some cool merchandise made up. Just like the record business is going after people who allegedly stole a whole bunch of music (how about the record company contracts, which are often a detailing of how the label will pillage an artist, cloaked in the fig leaf of legalese?), Ford has decided that it didn't like a bunch of Jaguar fans making up calendars and selling them to a small group of like-minded people. The idea that there'd be enthusiasts so enamored with one of its PAG properties that they'd go through all that effort was so abhorrent to Ford that the automaker shot off a trademark infringement lawsuit to put an end to the Leaper Love Fest. Maybe Jag's next owner will embrace the fans rather than alienate them.

Thanks for the tip, Chuck

[Source: XKE Data via Goolsbee.org]
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[Alexander]

That is is really bright. Go bring a lawsuit against those who are loyal to the brand and promote it.

Ford should thank these people, not sue them.
I doubt these enthusiasts make any significant money off of the calendars.

It used to be that manufacturers did not care about others making toys and likenesses of their cars, because it was free promotion for their products, plus they were making money on cars. Now automakers all want royalties on these products.

[Alexander]

Though I think this lawsuit is wrong and self-damaging, I do not think it is analogous to the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) going after people who share music downloads. The recording industry gets no benefits and loses profits from people sharing music.

The calendars are positive promotion for the company and they would get little significant profit if they did this service themselves.