The phrase "Super Hero" is jointly trademarked by Marvel and DC Comics...
"Comics Creators Search for 'Super Hero' Alternative" by Neda Ulaby c2006 NPR

Marvel and DC have decided to enforce their trademark of "Super Hero"(tm). I would advise that anyone with any Poser or other content featuring the words "Super Hero"(tm) purge those files immediately. Such material including those featuring "Superhero" and "Super-Hero" are in serious violation of a trademark duly registered by two responsible corporate citizens. It is illegal as well as unethical to use materials that violate the trademark protection afforded these corporations in our civil society. Leaving any such materials on your hard drive or in your archives would only invite the illegal miss-use of these materials by others with less moral or legal sense then yourselves. Please notify anyone who you believe may possesss such illegal materials so they will be able to protect both themselves and Marvel and DC in this matter.

*My use of the material excerpted from the NPR website is for journalistic purposes only. My use of the phrase "Super Hero"(tm) in this post text is for journalistic and educational purposes. I reproduce these items of copyright and trade mark protected text in good faith that neither Renderosity nor Bondware will use the phrase "Super Hero"(tm) as it appears in this post or the material derived from NPR for commercial purposes.

Please use the phrase "Super Hero" responsibly.*

they can try to trademark any word-combination they want, but that's no guarantee they won't be laughed out of court if the right people oppose it.

How bout' "Super Hiro" ?

"Ultrasuper Hero" ... or ... "Super Heroine?"

"Megasuper Hero?"

"Supreme Hero?"

"Stupid Hero?"
NaySayGuy wanted me to ask about that one.
If it's not trademarked, ......... he wants to use it.

Oh, and don't forget "Souper Hero" ... who is always on a liquid diet.

cheers,
dr geep
;=]

ROTFLMAO !!!! Thanks kathym. ;=]

I'm going to trademark the word tricycle. From now on, all use of the word tricycle requires my approval, granted only upon payment of a hefty licensing fee. :P

I think I'd switch to Superhero or SuperHero which arn't trademarked. God, what have we come to when companies own bits of our language?

Ok, then I'm gonna copyright E major, A major and B7. I reckon some of them old Blues cats are gonna be owing me big bucks. :D

:) I think it is a great example of silliness that truly obstructs those who try to legitimately protect their efforts. Do you have a direct link. :)

is it april 1st yet :)

........ gettin' awful close!

IMVHO

;=]

Attached Link: http://goodcomics.blogspot.com/2006/03/superhero-trademark-faq.html

Attached Link: NPR

You can check AP, Reuters, New York Times, etc.

I am not joking, if we as a community take seriously our commitment to Intellectual Property Rights we must honor them whether we think we will be found out and/or prosecuted or not. Stealing the phrase "Super Hero"(tm) isn't right just because you don't think you'll get caught or that if you do get caught there won't be serious consequences!

I recommend you do a thorough search of your storage media to delete any offending material but you should make sure to dump the search term from your file management software as soon as your done. I know that using the term in a search is a grey area here but probably the lesser evil is excusable in attempting to rectify the greater evil. Do not forget to look for any "hidden" offences such as morph targets and textures that use or contain the protected phrase "Super Hero"(tm). Since "deleting" or "emptying" from the Recycle Bin(tm) doesn't actually destroy data it might be advised to use a "shredder" application or to apply 32-bit encryption prior to deleting offending material.

I know I can trust the people here not to take such a serious matter as some sort of joke.

Attached Link: http://www.boingboing.net/2006/03/18/marvel_comics_steali.html

Oops ........ sorry momodot. Them x-posts will byte you (almost) everytime. ;=[

Hmm...how about "Exceptionally-Abled Person?" Seriously though, I think this is taking things a bit far. "Super" and "hero" are two words in the English language. Does this mean anyone can choose a combination of words, trademark them, then have exclusive rights to those words in that combination? If so, I'm going to check on trademarking "Shit Happens." If I get it, I'm going to demand a ton from those bumper sticker and button companies. And how about "Stop the war?" OOOOhhhh! That'll bring a fortune! Can't paint your sign unless you get my signed permission and pay my fee.

Message edited on: 03/27/2006 19:11

gimme a break ~eyeroll~ I'm with Kathym & Geep...get a life.

"Superb Hero" ???????????????????????????

Wadd'ya mean I can't trademark the word "Superb?" ............ Y knot?

Sorry .......... NaySayGuy wants me to keep trying.

I guess that's because I told him that ....... I found him very trying.

;=]

I have trademarked the word "the" and the letters "a,e,i,o,u". I am being very generous in allowing anyone to use them on receipt of a $1 fee. Does anyone know of a nice island for sale in the south seas.

"I know I can trust the people here not to take such a serious matter as some sort of joke" I can. This whole trademark thing is becoming a big bunch of sweaty steamming bullsht. TV's on in the background. 24 (as in the number) and I'm loving it are trademaeked. Words and phrases we've been using for years without saying or paying. It's all bllocks and does more to put the average guy off respecting trademark/copyright. < / grumpy giving up nictotine mode off>

I claim the letter 'e'..;) There's more superhetero (what the hey, why borrow trouble..;) than Star Trek..;) now if I could patent 'nipp**s'..I could own prawnography..;)

I think they're crazy and I have no intention of deleting any offending material from my hard drive. They wanna come after me let 'em. I really don't give a crap. David

Kathym, my thoughts metamorphed into graphic detail! ;) Thanks! I'm going to trademark every word in every dictionary. Then you all will have to pay me to write, read, speak, listen, or even think in any language covered by dictionaries. Sounds like a plan - as idiotic as theirs that is...

David, I don't know how you can cop that kind of attitude. Would you steal from the church Poor Box if you thought you would not get caught! I don't want to be mean, I am just disappointed, disappointed and saddened. Marvel and DC are two honest and caring corporate entities, they deserve to have people respect their intellectual and creative capital... I understand that you feel the way you do now, David, but I know that on further reflection you will understand that taking the proper measures to protect Marvel and DC isn't just the right thing for them, it is the right thing for you.

sorry, momo, but it IS a joke. as geep pointed out, the terms are already in such widespread use that whatever claims they think they have on the term are rendered invalid by the common use of the term.

SUPERHERO! LOL...This world is starting to spin out of control!

Bookmark...

You guys talk practicalities but what about the moral realities? Don't you know in your hearts that respecting this trademark is the right thing to do whether it is enforcible or not? Who in this forum would suggest that distributing a figure with rigging substantially similar to that of DAZ 3D's Victoria 3 is morally right? I think it would be hypocritical to turn our backs on the moral rights of an individual or company simply because they are not members of the community. Society is our community!

kathym I second that hand gesture. ;)

The corporations oppression is unrelenting. o_O

I guess we can call them Spandex special powered beefecake people or spandex-superpowered-beefcake-people?

Hehehe... :P

momodot, are you serious? "honest and caring corporate entities"?? Have you ever worked for either of them??? This entire thread is fluff and knee-jerk. The entire issue revolves around two corporate entities trying to portect the sale of items witht he word "super hero" in them. They do NOT have police powers to search anyone's drives or homes. This is scaremongering at best.

i got one....super men in tights!!! this so reminds me of paris hilton claiming the words "that's hot" as her own.

Since Marvel and DC are not involved in the 3D market, the use of the term "super-hero" in Poser-related product names is perfectly legal.

Delta makes water faucets. Delta is a major airline. Both are trademarked names and different companies, but, as they do not compete in the same (or similar) product market, it is a non-issue.

Message edited on: 03/27/2006 20:36

And I quote "I recommend you do a thorough search of your storage media to delete any offending material but you should make sure to dump the search term from your file management software as soon as your done" - now they're going to hack into our systems and file lawsuits because of things on OUR hard drives? It would be they who were violating laws.

I don't agree with you momodot. I work for a company that has to trademark catch phrases for our particular product. Usually the only place that a trademark applies is if you're in the same field/market where it is registered. Personally I think you're blowing this whole thing out of proportion. And I think that Marvel and DC are too full of themselves to think they can get away with it. What about Dark Horse and the other comic companies out there? Are they supposed to stop using the word? Marvel and DC trademarking that word is like Proctor & Gamble trademarking "soap". It's too common of a word to be able to enforce. David

Does it matter if Marvel and DC are honest and/or caring? They have a registered trademark. People in these forums respect the right of DAZ to block anything "substantially similar" to their products. People respect the unstated "intentions" of people who published Poser content on the internet without any re-distribution restrictions back before the turn of the century. Why this cavalier attitude toward the integrity of Super Hero(tm) as a privately owned piece of intellectual property? Do you think maybe we shouldn't take any of this stuff seriously?

A "Thermos" by any other name is still a thermos. I hope someone remembers the lawsuit about the Thermos

Attached Link: Comics Creators Search for 'Super Hero' Alternative

Soap? .... Hmmm ...... How about soup? Mmmmm ......... good! Oops, I think that phrase might be (gasp) trademarked. ;=]

I did notice that in Pixar's "The Incredibles" they used the term "supers". I thought at the time that it was just to set a kind of casual mood for the film (i.e., there are so many of them and they're so commonplace that people have abbreviated the term, like "phone" for "telephone" and "tv" for "television", etc.). It does work on that level, but now I see they were avoiding any hint of trademark violation. By the way, I think DC and Marvel are full of crap on this matter, but I'm not a court, so my opinion isn't going going to change anything. bonni

Usually the only place that a trademark applies is if you're in the same field/market where it is registered. Comics, graphic novels, graphic art, animated film and live action movies, and licensed merchandise v. Computer Generated Art and Animations. It is an interesting matter...

Anyway, I didn't want you to get all riled up. I just thought this was an issue of importance to the community. Maybe the bottom line is let your conscience be your guide, look at a given situation and judge for yourself if an innocent party is being harmed. Maybe to be balanced people have to set aside a rigid, legalistic, officious and overweening attitudes and make choices based on what feels right. I actually believe you all are doing what you feel is right. That you would stop and consider whether a person who for example makes a prop using Poser primitives and distributes it as Freestuff will in fact "cause immediate and irreparable damage and injury" to the current owner of Poser. Maybe you are right, maybe we shouldn't leap on the band wagon of over-reaching copyright, trademark, and EULA claims as though they are some new toy with which to bludgeon artists. Food for thought.

Momodot, Marvel and DC are hardly corporations filled with good hearted folks, all angels and god like. There are many many stories out there where many folks that headed those companies had and probably still have ties with organized crime. It was and might still be a place that I would not want to become too enmeshed in. You are placing both of these companies on pedestals for the sake of some churchy belief that they are in the right here. I don't agree with this spreading fear like that in a completely different field such as 3D. I have been an AVID comic book collector since I was 11 years old, I'm 45 now and have to say that this has got the be the silliest thread going right now. According to the NPR segment I just heard the copyright was created in the 60's but this is the first I have heard about it so it's not like they are going around sue happy or anything. I totally agree with many others views that if Marvel or DC Comics even tried to pull that on someone that wishes to say "I've created my own Superhero comic book" and sue that person because they have that term copyrighted they would be laughed out of the courts. If not laughed out then certainly they would be frowned upon by their peers for picking on the little guy!! I personally am not going to worry about!! I simply don't agree how you are so insistent about how we aught to know in our hearts we are in the wrong and those "law abiding" citizens are in the right. Yea, right, law abiding! Sure.... what ever! More like full of crap and of themselves. Must be lonely at the top when you have to impose your power over common words in the English language that just happen to be put together to form a term that is used the world over! :roll eyes and leaves the room: Richard :-|

Message edited on: 03/27/2006 21:33

Just to add: Merriam-Webster's Unabridged Dictionary: Main Entry:superhero Pronunciation:+ Function:noun Etymology:super- + hero : a fictional hero (as in a comic book) having extraordinary or supernatural powers; also : an exceptionally skillful or successful person* Hmmm, I don't see (tm) DC Comics/Marvel anywhere in that definition. Maybe they should sue...

Heh!

I've been biting my tongue to not be a buzzkill but RAMWolff is right. Legendary comic artist Neal Adams said the same kind of thing on national radio a few weeks ago.

Message edited on: 03/27/2006 21:35

You guys really have me thinking... when was Thus Spake Zarathustra translated into English?

Basically, the trademark is already unenforceable. It is in such common use now that Marvel & DC do not have a leg to stand on. Provided you had the money to keep up with all their appeals - the trademark would be overturned and (possibly) the two corporations would have to pay you legal fees (there was a case recently where Mattel was forced to do this for suing someone making parodies of Barbie). Given your reasoning momodot, it is perfectly acceptable for Microsoft to trademark the term "Windows". Believe it or not - Microsoft knows the term is on very shaky ground (as the term "windows" for the GUI was coined before they made the Windows software) and always settles when the company they are suing comes close to the end of a court case (i.e. before the judge is allowed to rule the trademark invalid). Just because someone obtains a trademark does not immediately make it valid. In exactly the same way that obtaining a patent does not make it valid. It simply means that the reviewer did not do their job properly. --EK

there's a huge difference between a trademark, a copyright, a service mark, and intellectual property. Doug

I just did the search over at USPTO website, and the top entry is a Japanese registrant who has the term as part of their computer game trade mark. I think this is going to become another series of Frivolous Lawsuits merry-go-round-the-bush event. The most lucrative solution IMHO - I should invest in a law firm, LLC type. winkz