3 ms·

just to be clear, the video/blogger that this discussion is about is also from the UK and this video is about his unhappiness figured i'd just edit my comment

just to be clear, the video/blogger that this discussion is about is also from the UK and this video is about his unhappiness figured i'd just edit my comment here to add another topic: the video says the lyric "does your Spearmint lose its flavor on the bedpost..." was changed to "chewing gum" because Spearmint was a trademark, which was banned on UK radio. The wikipedia article does not mention Spearmint being a trademark. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spearmint https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spearmint Anybody know the story? [did more research, perhaps the answer is that Wrigley's trademarked the "arrow" design surrounding the word spearmint on the label, the arrow presumably an analogy to a "spear"]

deleted 6y ago
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dcomp 6y ago
Most likely because spearmint was short for Wrigley's spearmint which was trademarked. I don't think spearmint chewing gum was a generic term at the time. Similar to how sellotape(TM) was trademarked but now cellotape is a generic term.
Jiocus 6y ago
I think it's the other way around. The BBC public radio are (were?) not allowed to condone -any- private businesses or products. Then it get's a bit tricky. Trademarks are a consumer protection device which affords the consumer to differentiate between competing products. As the song appeals to a chewing gum, and it's assumed that the general public are aware of one brand, two brands or 50 brands of spearmint-flavoured chewing gums for purchase - the radio may reason that the lyric would be unfit according to their mission. It's less about any actual trademark such as a Spearmint® Chewing Gum, than it is a public association to some marketed goods (and the BBC's stated mission to not condone such). This is just a random reasoning of mine, so a grain of salt etc. This entry mentions this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Does_Your_Chewing_Gum_Lose_Its_Flavour_(On_the_Bedpost_Overnight%3F) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Does_Your_Chewing_Gum_Lose_Its..., but the issue is marked 'dubious'.

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]

dcomp 6y ago

Most likely because spearmint was short for Wrigley's spearmint which was trademarked. I don't think spearmint chewing gum was a generic term at the time. Similar to how sellotape(TM) was trademarked but now cellotape is a generic term.

Jiocus 6y ago

I think it's the other way around. The BBC public radio are (were?) not allowed to condone -any- private businesses or products. Then it get's a bit tricky. Trademarks are a consumer protection device which affords the consumer to differentiate between competing products. As the song appeals to a chewing gum, and it's assumed that the general public are aware of one brand, two brands or 50 brands of spearmint-flavoured chewing gums for purchase - the radio may reason that the lyric would be unfit according to their mission. It's less about any actual trademark such as a Spearmint® Chewing Gum, than it is a public association to some marketed goods (and the BBC's stated mission to not condone such). This is just a random reasoning of mine, so a grain of salt etc. This entry mentions this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Does_Your_Chewing_Gum_Lose_Its_Flavour_(On_the_Bedpost_Overnight%3F) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Does_Your_Chewing_Gum_Lose_Its..., but the issue is marked 'dubious'.