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Legal Regulations For Ambush Maketing

Posted on:2010-07-08Degree:MasterType:Thesis
Country:ChinaCandidate:Y DongFull Text:PDF
GTID:2166360302489306Subject:Civil and Commercial Law
Abstract/Summary:PDF Full Text Request
Ambush marketing is, originally, an alien concept, which has been researched rarely in China. Among the only less than 100 articles related to this issue in china, most of them are sports entertainment publications or business periodical. At present there is no even a monograph that has studyed this issue Systematically.Becoming a sponsor of the Olympic Games not only can get the glory, but also have great business opportunities. By taking this chance, they can enhance brand awareness, create corporation image and build a good business reputation of the enterprise to achieve rapid market expansion relying on the good image and the enormous influence of the Olympic Games. However, there are many companies that do not want to or can not afford to pay such a high cost of global sponsorship, but still would like to use the Olympics glory to promote their own values. So they look for legal loopholes to bypass the laws and regulations, using various cunning methods to catch the Olympic Games. By this way, ambush marketing appears.The first part, ambush marketing is a marketing campaign that takes place around an event but does not involve payment of a sponsorship fee to the event, which against the sponsor contract rights of IOC, NOCs and sponsors. According to the analysis of ambush marketing, it is summed up the following characteristics: first, ambush marketing hid in the sponsor's marketing practices; second, from the case of Kodak and Fuji in 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games, the infringers of ambush marketing operate by means of a single direction to diversification, so that those who were infringed Anti-anti-less; third, ambush marketing not only have a direct negative impact to the Olympic sponsors but also spread to the Olympic Games organizers, consumers and even the perpetrators themselves.The second part, the intellectual property protection pattern is the only choice under the existed legal system. But there is an inherent contradiction in this pattern: the contradiction between private properties of intellectual property rights and official property of ICO, NCOs, ect. Therefore, using this pattern is relatively weak regarding to the sponsor's protection and has difficulties in actual implementation. On the base of detailed analysis of IOC, NOCs and sponsors'rights, I put forward the idea of the infringement of the third party pattern and make two kinds of patterns to undertake responsibility of the Olympics property right protection together by combining international experience and domestic realistic situation.The third part, in China, in order to protect the Olympic property rights and legal sponsors'rights, governments and sports organizations have fully made use of legislative, administrative, judicial and public means to protect the Olympic brand. The original "Trademark Law" and "special logo regulations" as well as other intellectual property rights protection have been provided. China has actively fulfilled its commitment in "29th Olympic Games host city contract" to the International Olympic Committee, passed the "Regulations on the Protection of the Olympic logo" which sets out rich content of Olympic Property Right in detail, defines who have the rights of the Olympic logo and involves ambush marketing problems in Article V, paragraph 6. This regulation has attacked ambush marketing more strongly than "Trademark law" have done.Moreover, in comparison with other countries on the issue of ambush marketing, this regulation reveals the new development. On the right establishment, the Industry and commerce administration department and Customs ,as direct performer of the rights, have attacked the infringements of Olympics property right severely, especially ambush marketing.The fourth part, Australia is the first country which legislates the Olympics intellectual property rights specially. As early as the year 1987, Australia had formulated "the Protection Law to Olympics symbolize " (modified in 2001). This law introduces the standard of"the rational person"to judge whether the business behavior which is not permitted does distort the Olympics trademark right or not. Canada has used the protection standard of"official symbol"to protect the Olympics property right. Its vigor to the Olympics property right is stronger than to the traditional trademark, because the trademark laws has the special provision about"official symbol". The legal basis of French Olympic property rights protection is Intellectual Property Code. The special law of British Olympic intellectual property protection is"Olympic logo Protection Act"which was enacted in 1995, protects the Olympic logo on a wider range than common trademark and also provides legal defense to infringement. Olympic property rights in New Zealand have also been protected wider than the common logo. The difference is New Zealand allows the potential users of Olympic logo to prove that the use will not let consumers mistake them as the sponsors of Olympic games, but the standard of proof is based on the judge's discretion.The United States ,as for the Olympic property rights ,gives a special legislative protection. The use of case law radically has reduced the standards of "confusion" about judging the Olympic infringement cases and has effectively reduced the U.S. Olympic Committee and sponsors'onus. Based on the above analysis, the most countries mainly use intellectual property protection mode, which is to protect the Olympics property right as the intellectual property rights. However, it should be emphasized that the meaning of Intellectual Property Rights here is not the same as the traditional sense of the intellectual property rights.The strength and breadth of the protection of Olympic property rights are stronger than general intellectual property rights.IOC and National Olympic Committees have still taken some other effective actions to defeat the variously cunning and enshrouded ambushing market. In order to protect the sponsorship , the policy of venue cleaning issued by IOC bans the drumbeating and advertisement in broadcasting on TV inside and outside the field or inside the sight of the spectators of Olympics Games. Governments and national Olympic Committees are also actively cooperating with the IOC to strengthen the industry standard , remove illegal ads and increase the protection and examinations of the Olympic logo. For those of China's 2008 Olympic Games they have a positive reference.The fifth part, according to the view of four elements, the constitution of infringement sum up the main ideas including: first, the subjects must be the third person who doesn't sponsored the contract, which is the sponsorship contract signed by Olympic Committee, host of the Olympic group and sponsors; second, subjective attitude must be deliberate, including direct and indirect one. Of course, direct infringement should be bound by law. About indirect infringement, because the publicity of sponsors'identity is very high, it also should be recognized as against the interests of the sponsorship contract; third, Objective performance, namely actual existed violating behavior against the benefit of the contract; forth, the results of the violation truly exists.Next, in order to effectively reduce the IOC, Olympic Committee group and sponsors'onus, improve the efficiency of protecting Rights, attack ambush marketing seriously, I suggest that ,referring to international experience , we can adopt the principle of the mistake estimation,which requires the accused to prove their conduct did not constitute ambush marketing behavior. In this way, it is also effective in narrowing the scope of attacking, avoiding affecting the sports enterprise's development in our nation because the attack scope is often oversized and reduce the enthusiasm of sports enterprises.The infringement of the third party pattern and the intellectual property protection pattern not only can coexist, but also complement each other. They both attack ambush marketing to safeguard the Chinese sports economy.
Keywords/Search Tags:Ambush marketing, Intellectual property, Infringement of the third party, Legal Regulations
PDF Full Text Request
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