Protouring Calendars

[Samckitt]

Here is some info on the threat of lawsuit Ford had against a group called "Black Mustang Club"

http://www.adrants.com/2008/01/ford-...ts-returns.php

While brands certainly don't want people using their products, logos and other related imagery to create products of their, own, the hammer that Ford legal dropped on the Black Mustang Club seems a bit heavy handed. Recently the club created a calendar which contained images of club members' cars photographed by the members themselves. Ford didn't take kindly to this and asked CafePress, the service the group had chosen to print the calendars, to kill the project claiming all the images in the calendar are the property of Ford...including the Black Mustang Club logo (this has been clarified in the update below. in actuality, it was CafePress which, based on past Ford trademark dealings, initially refused to print the calendar).

It's understandable that a brand would and should do everything it can to protect itself from any kind of potential negative effect but to attack a group of people who, clearly, love the product in question simply for showing their love of that product is, well, idiotic and more harmful to the brand had they done nothing at all.

BMC Owner Lisa commented to group members, "I'm sorry, but at this point we will not be producing the 2008 BMC Calendar, featuring our 2007 Members of the Month, solely due to Ford Motor Company's claim that they own all rights to the photos you take of your car. I hope to resolve this soon, and be able to provide the calendar and other BMC merchandise that you guys want and deserve!"



We hope this can be resolved as well. It's one thing to protect your brand from being harmfully tarnished. It's another to shoot down the very people who love your product the most.Wake up and smell the CGM, Ford.

UPDATE: The issue has been resolved. Ford Car Communication's Whitney Drake tells us "Mustang (and other car owners) can take pictures of their cars and make calendars and sell them to whomever they like. They can't however use Ford logos in the calendar." She further clarifies, "The club (Black Mustang Club) and cafe press (or another printer) now has permission to print the calendar. Apparently, CafePress misunderstood the intent of an earlier communication from Ford regarding the use of trademarks on other products they sold when it told Black Mustang Club it would not print its calendars.

[dropit69]

so calender will be called just cars..lol.or does someone own that name too??

[Samckitt]

so all we need to do is make sure there are no logos?? sounds easy enough..

Easy enough with Photoshop!

[Bow Tie 67]

In my skeptical mind I say the Shark ( sorry to any on the board, I do have friends who are lawyers ) picked up on this and is trying to make a buck on the side. But what do I know. Scam

[Droolguy]

Easy enough with Photoshop!

The logos on the vehicle are exempt as they are "part" of the vehicle. They mean no big chevrolet symbols superimposed on the pictures... exct.

[Van B]

I am going to sue GM to pay me advertising revenue for when my wife drives her Impala around. Makes about as much sense. Do the magazines have to pay GM any time they run a picture of a car that has a Chevrolet bowtie on it.

Oh, and Matt, you are going to have to change your screen name. GM owns the words Bow Tie...

[budweasel]

There it is.

Truth is stranger than fiction.

[Larry Callahan]

I was told by the lawyer that works between GM and Cafe Press that if you can tell it's say a Camaro that GM owns the rights block it from publication.

I'm not giving up yet. I have talked to them on the phone and they are passing it on for further review.

[zbugger]

That absolutely bites. The only thing the calendar would contain would be photos of the vehicles themselves, right? So in what way would they own the rights? It just sounds retarded to me...

[Larry Callahan]

It's nuts. Just check out Cafepress and search for Camaro or Corvette or Impala and you will find HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of items that fall into the same category yet they have not been pulled.

[Bow Tie 67]

Get ready for some " additional " fees if it goes through.

[GrabberGT]

so calender will be called just cars..lol.or does someone own that name too??

"CARS" would be owned by Disney right? LOL

This situation makes me happy I removed all identifying badges on my car as soon as I got it. I do it with every car I get.

Count me in for one of the more model diverse P-T calendars when they come available. Just tell me where to send the money.

[Jim Nilsen]

It's nuts. Just check out Cafepress and search for Camaro or Corvette or Impala and you will find HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of items that fall into the same category yet they have not been pulled.

The people invloved are pushing the edge and hoping you pay up front so they can move on. They will continue to push like bill collectors until you tell them you don't care and that they have to prove it when it happens.The obvious thing is that others have told them to go take a hike and that is why you still see it all up. It hasn't even happened yet and they have their hand out already proving that they keep moving to fresh meat as fast as possible. Without content they have nothing and they will never have something unless you send them one.

Make them have to earn their money and they will take the path of least resistance and move on just like bill collectors do.

Speculation on their part does not constitute a reality on ours.

[Jim Nilsen]

What IF ?

There are more ways to do this and I wonder if this is possible?

If there was a format that could be put up that had the 12 months of the year and you could insert any pic you wanted to choose from and then print it or send it to a file and have it printed up the size and way you want it?

Just make a donation to get into the thread and there you go. It's not like anyone is out to make a profit and everyone doing it themselves adds diversity you just can't get any other way.

We could just make a page for the car of the month with a calender below it. I only show one page of my calender at a time.

It's just a thought and I know I have thought about making my own calender many times. A good choice of pics that are high quality would help.

I know paying up and getting one already made is easier for some but it may be a way to get around the lawyers.

[Mark Antrim]

These are the things that drive me nuts. Do they have noting better to do than bother a group of hobbyist? We aren't going to make millions on this and for a lot of us it's just a way of saying we got our car in something. What about all these posters that are out there( you know the ones that we get at the shows) and the renderings? Why are they bothering our small community.

[Bow Tie 67]

These are the things that drive me nuts. Do they have noting better to do than bother a group of hobbyist? We aren't going to make millions on this and for a lot of us it's just a way of saying we got our car in something. What about all these posters that are out there( you know the ones that we get at the shows) and the renderings? Why are they bothering our small community.

I think it comes down to the printer covering their ass.

[DriverzInc]

Just dandy. GM has gotten involved and has an issue with our calendars and won't let us print images of GM products.

I have made a call and I have sent off an e-mail to see what we can do. Unbelievable.

Ugh. If it gets resolved, we'll take a least 4 for the offices here.

[Steve68]

I'll take my calender with big pieces of green painter masking tape on the factory emblems!

[jr421]

OK SO LETS MAKE THE ASSUMPTION THAT WE BOUGHT GM WITH BILLIONS OF DOLLARS THAT WE DONATED TO THEM TO KEEP THEM MAKING EXCITING NEW CARS....... I CALL THIS BOARD MEETING TO ORDER......... EVERYONE IN FAVOR OF ALLOWING THE PRO-TOURING SITE TO HAVE THEIR CALENDER SAY EY.......... EXCELLENT IT PASSES 1 BILLION TO 0.


SERIOUSLY I THINK ITS VERY SAD THAT THEY HAVE HUGE PUBLIC RELATIONS ISSUES ALREADY AND THEY CAN'T FIGURE IT OUT. WHY DON'T THEY THEMSELVES IN THE FOOT AGAIN!

[Jim Nilsen]

I think it comes down to the printer covering their ass.

That's exactly what is going on. It's a shame that the lawyer for them doesn't have a grasp of what others have done.

I vote for telling Cafe Press to go find their asses and get back to us when and if ever they do.

The calender I have put out by Leapyear Publishing just has the year and type of car on it and that is all along with a nice pic and they have had obviously no trouble at all, not a mention of GM on the whole thing.

They can be reached at www.leapyearpublishing.com

they are represented by [email protected]

Just go with the people who already know what to do. If the publishing company makes money off of the deal by collecting the money and giving it to GM that would be a good reason for the lawyer to be on the side of us paying for something we don't need to worry about. they are just being middle men and you can go directly to the licensing company that GM uses. If you need the number I can get it for you or maybe Jeff Tate can post it.

TAKE OUT THE MIDDLEMAN and their lawyer too.