4 ms·

Impressed with their criteria and design of their experiment. Also, very sympathetic with the inventor being upset with use of the symbol out of it's place, th

by toss1 4y ago

Impressed with their criteria and design of their experiment. Also, very sympathetic with the inventor being upset with use of the symbol out of it's place, thereby reducing it's effectiveness. This seems like one instance where copyright law should be implemented and strictly enforced, some kind of license free-to-use for actual biohazards but not anything else.

ComputerGuru 4y ago
This is actually the case for the washing machine/dryer/care tag symbols on clothes. They’re actually licensed trademarks of an organization that (freely?) licenses them specifically for use on clothing labels for care instructions but forbids their use otherwise such as a part of a t-shirt design for aesthetic reasons or on a mug or the cover of a magazine (fair use excepted).
- wizofaus 4y ago
  Would this count as fair use? https://www.spreadshirt.com.au/shop/design/funny+washing+instructions+kids+t-shirt-D5e09b9c32051761c00ed18ed?sellable=ZbBrrEA3XMT9R2QL17xv-48-9 https://www.spreadshirt.com.au/shop/design/funny+washing+ins...
  - ComputerGuru 4y ago
    Sarcasm is technically fair use! But the commercial aspect of it might cause a judge to reconsider. Of course, that shirt is for sale in Australia and I have no idea what fair use encompasses there. (Also, the design aesthetic of that shirt is atrocious in every sense.)
thejohnconway 4y ago
Yeah, I’d never thought of the overuse aspect of symbols like this, and I agree. I think it should be enforced.
kipari 4y ago
Related to this is the Red Cross and Crescent symbols, which have their usage protected usage (mainly for armed forces and emergency relief) by the Geneva Convention: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emblems_of_the_International_Red_Cross_and_Red_Crescent_Movement https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emblems_of_the_International_R...
- ClumsyPilot 4y ago
  Seems like a clusterfuck: "Johnson & Johnson has registered the symbol for their medicinal products." How did this ever get approved? "The appropriation of the symbol has led to further irritation due to the practice of hospitals, first aid teams, and ski patrols in the United States reversing the symbol to a white cross on a red background – so undoing the original idea of the Red Cross emblem, namely reversing the Swiss flag – thus inappropriately suggesting an affiliation with Switzerland."
  - kube-system 4y ago
    The wiki article says that J&J was using the symbol before the US started enforcing protections on it. So the answer to why it was approved is that there was no law preventing it from being approved.
- fredley 4y ago
  Even Stardew Valley fell afoul of this and replaced it's red cross medical logo with green: https://www.stardewvalley.net/1-3-32-small-bug-fix-patch-released-on-pc-today/ https://www.stardewvalley.net/1-3-32-small-bug-fix-patch-rel... I imagine many other video games violate the Geneva convention!
  - cprecioso 4y ago
    Oh good I can introduce you to one of my favorite Twitter accounts https://twitter.com/violategeneva https://twitter.com/violategeneva
    - 4y ago
ClumsyPilot 4y ago
Copyright is the wrong hammer - firstly it will run out eventually. Secondly, copyright holder can die, coupyright could be sold, and new owner could be irresponsible, litigious, and repurpose the symbol for a brand of coffee. Then what, should all labs and scientists in the world find a new symbol? The only solution is to treat misuse of the symbol same way we treat misusing emergency services.
- batguano 4y ago
  IANAL, but I believe trademark protection is more applicable here. Firstly, it is more applicable to an identifying mark, symbol or logo. And it can be renewed indefinitely.
- toss1 4y ago
  Yes, I think you're right. I was first thinking of laws, but they are slow & contentious to pass (esp with one party consistently acting in bad faith), so I quickly landed on copyright, which of course has all the problems you cite and more. Maybe start with (C), and pass laws to implement your solution? Or, maybe there's a way prosecutors can leverage existing laws.

by toss1 4y ago

ComputerGuru 4y ago

This is actually the case for the washing machine/dryer/care tag symbols on clothes. They’re actually licensed trademarks of an organization that (freely?) licenses them specifically for use on clothing labels for care instructions but forbids their use otherwise such as a part of a t-shirt design for aesthetic reasons or on a mug or the cover of a magazine (fair use excepted).

wizofaus 4y ago
Would this count as fair use? https://www.spreadshirt.com.au/shop/design/funny+washing+instructions+kids+t-shirt-D5e09b9c32051761c00ed18ed?sellable=ZbBrrEA3XMT9R2QL17xv-48-9 https://www.spreadshirt.com.au/shop/design/funny+washing+ins...
- ComputerGuru 4y ago
  Sarcasm is technically fair use! But the commercial aspect of it might cause a judge to reconsider. Of course, that shirt is for sale in Australia and I have no idea what fair use encompasses there. (Also, the design aesthetic of that shirt is atrocious in every sense.)

thejohnconway 4y ago

Yeah, I’d never thought of the overuse aspect of symbols like this, and I agree. I think it should be enforced.

kipari 4y ago

Related to this is the Red Cross and Crescent symbols, which have their usage protected usage (mainly for armed forces and emergency relief) by the Geneva Convention: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emblems_of_the_International_Red_Cross_and_Red_Crescent_Movement https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emblems_of_the_International_R...

ClumsyPilot 4y ago
Seems like a clusterfuck: "Johnson & Johnson has registered the symbol for their medicinal products." How did this ever get approved? "The appropriation of the symbol has led to further irritation due to the practice of hospitals, first aid teams, and ski patrols in the United States reversing the symbol to a white cross on a red background – so undoing the original idea of the Red Cross emblem, namely reversing the Swiss flag – thus inappropriately suggesting an affiliation with Switzerland."
- kube-system 4y ago
  The wiki article says that J&J was using the symbol before the US started enforcing protections on it. So the answer to why it was approved is that there was no law preventing it from being approved.
fredley 4y ago
Even Stardew Valley fell afoul of this and replaced it's red cross medical logo with green: https://www.stardewvalley.net/1-3-32-small-bug-fix-patch-released-on-pc-today/ https://www.stardewvalley.net/1-3-32-small-bug-fix-patch-rel... I imagine many other video games violate the Geneva convention!
- cprecioso 4y ago
  Oh good I can introduce you to one of my favorite Twitter accounts https://twitter.com/violategeneva https://twitter.com/violategeneva
  - 4y ago

ClumsyPilot 4y ago

Copyright is the wrong hammer - firstly it will run out eventually. Secondly, copyright holder can die, coupyright could be sold, and new owner could be irresponsible, litigious, and repurpose the symbol for a brand of coffee. Then what, should all labs and scientists in the world find a new symbol? The only solution is to treat misuse of the symbol same way we treat misusing emergency services.

batguano 4y ago
IANAL, but I believe trademark protection is more applicable here. Firstly, it is more applicable to an identifying mark, symbol or logo. And it can be renewed indefinitely.
toss1 4y ago
Yes, I think you're right. I was first thinking of laws, but they are slow & contentious to pass (esp with one party consistently acting in bad faith), so I quickly landed on copyright, which of course has all the problems you cite and more. Maybe start with (C), and pass laws to implement your solution? Or, maybe there's a way prosecutors can leverage existing laws.