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Note that the IOC is trying the same thing with #Rio2016 #TeamUSA and other hashtags. http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-36915565 http://www.bbc.com/news/b

• dhimes 10y ago
  From your linked page: "In 2013 the first US applications to trademark hashtags started being submitted. And while it's impossible to stop ordinary people talking about the event online using registered hashtags, it is now possible to restrict what companies do."
• darkarmani 10y ago
  What? I've been saying TeamUSA since high school when playing friendly games against people from other countries. How can you possibly trademark that? Rio2016 is also a little insane. I guess no one else is going to rio in 2016.
  • Spivak 10y ago
    > What? I've been eating Apples since I was a child. How could you possibly trademark that? You're falling into the same trap as some a few others -- a generic term doesn't necessarily disqualify it from being trademarked.
    • soared 10y ago
      Well sure, but the real trap is completely not understanding trademarks. As a person (not a company, not representing a company, etc.) you can say/use/whatever with a trademark. Trademarks only affected another business's use of that trademark, not individual people. Its truly comical that people don't understand this.