Owners, Borrowers & Thieves 2.0 : Owners, Borrowers & Thieves 2.0 : Husch Blackwell Sanders LLP : First Amendment, Commercial Speech

About two weeks ago, at Archon, I was giving an interview about comic-book law. I was talking about the different ways to protect rights in a character and during the discussion of trademarks, I was asked about DC Comics and Marvel's joint ownership of the trademark for Super Heroes. This seems to come up a great deal when you are discussing IP law with aspiring comics creators. For example, check out the post at Comics Should Be Good.

Yes, DC and Marvel jointly own the "Super Heroes" trademark. U.S. Registration No. 1179067 for the trademark SUPER HEROES in connection with comic books and some other products. 

That still leaves a question: What does that mean for everyone else?

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This past weekend I made my presentations at Archon 32. As usual creators rights and character copyright generated a great deal of discussion. In addition to my two panels, I was interviewed by the folks at Back Seat Productions and the Podgecast. I’ll post a link when it goes live. This con draws a mostly local crowd, but it showcased some nationally regarded talent on its panels and enthusiastic fan support.

I had the opportunity to briefly meet the Artist/Gaming Guest of Honor John Kovalic. My kids are big fans of Munchkin, a card game he illustrates. A friend directed me to this cartoon he did which has special resonance for character copyright geeks like me. Click on the image to check out the cartoon at Dork Tower.

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