Days after Osama Bin Laden was taken care of by US Navy SEALs (an elite military unit), Disney (who markets to young children) was quick on its feet to trademark the term SEAL Team 6 in an effort to market future toys, movies, and games to children. It didn’t take too long for Disney to realize the error it committed and has “surrendered” the trademark back to the Navy.
The fundamentals behind copyright laws are sound. They are meant to reward people and foster a system that inspires innovation. Otherwise, you are going to have companies like Urban Outfitters stealing ideas from indie artist. Even Miley Cyrus was vocal on that issue.
Some companies and celebrities that we may otherwise like or admire, seem to reach a state where they feel ever more entitled to owning everything. Take Super Bowl champion John Elway. His legal team recently sent a letter to an American punk rock band named Elway requesting that they change their name. You can read more about it on punknews.org together with a statement from the bands FB page (facebook.com/ElwayTheBand).
