Trademark Theory. William Fisher

Transcription

1 May 24, 2011 Trademark Theory William Fisher 2008, William Fisher. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License.

2 What Do Trademarks Do?

3 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of

4 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Reduce transaction costs

5 Consumer Information Theory TMs reduce transaction costs (especially search time and memory requirements) by assisting consumers in making informed choices Value of TMs is highest when: goods are difficult to inspect costs of mistaken choice are high consumers are not making repeat purchases consumers are wealthy

6 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Reduce transaction costs

7 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of

8 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of Criticism: strategy of brand experience indicates that manufacturers typically build brand recognition and loyalty through strategies other than increase in product quality

9 Brand Experience Sources: Performance of the product Treatment of customers Community extent to which consumers of the product identify with other brand users and support the noncommercial commitments of the company

10 erman.com /Content/ assets/ 10059_bes. pdf

11 Brand Experience : 2002 Scorecard Source:

12 Give Women What They Want

13 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of Criticism: strategy of brand experience indicates that manufacturers typically build brand recognition and loyalty through strategies other than increase in product quality

14 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of Criticism: strategy of brand experience indicates that manufacturers typically build brand recognition and loyalty through strategies other than increase in product quality Retort: But those strategies are welfare enhancing for other reasons

15 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of

16 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Mnemonic devices Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of

17 Mnemonic Power Honda Acura Lexus Chevrolet Toyota Mazda Hyundai Chrysler Harley-Davidson

18 Mnemonic Power Honda (bonus: Honda Motorcycles) Acura Lexus Chevrolet Toyota Mazda Hyundai Chrysler Harley-Davidson

19 Mnemonic Power Honda (bonus: Honda Motorcycles) Acura Lexus Chevrolet Toyota Mazda Hyundai Chrysler Harley-Davidson Excellent

20 Mnemonic Power Honda (bonus: Honda Motorcycles) Acura Lexus Chevrolet Toyota Mazda Hyundai Chrysler Harley-Davidson Excellent Good

21 Mnemonic Power Honda (bonus: Honda Motorcycles) Acura Lexus Chevrolet Toyota Mazda Hyundai Chrysler Harley-Davidson Excellent Good Poor

22 Mnemonic Power

23 Mnemonic Power

24 Mnemonic Power

25 Mnemonic Power

26 Mnemonic Power

27 Mnemonic Power

28 Mnemonic Power

29 Mnemonic Power

30 Mnemonic Power

31 Mnemonic Power

32 Mnemonic Power

33 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Mnemonic devices Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of

34 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Mnemonic devices Provide substantive information Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of

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36 2008, William Fisher. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License. May 24, 2011

37 2008, William Fisher. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License. May 24, 2011

38 2008, William Fisher. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License. May 24, 2011

39 Effects of Trademarks that Convey Substantive Informative Beneficial Assist consumers in making informed choices Pressure manufacturers to increase quality Pernicious Confer market power on owner of the TM Prices rise Some consumers priced out of the market

40 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Mnemonic devices Provide substantive information Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of

41 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Mnemonic devices Provide substantive information Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of

42 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Mnemonic devices Provide substantive information Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of Confer market power and threaten competition

43 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Mnemonic devices Provide substantive information Generalized indicia of prestige Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of Confer market power and threaten competition

44 2008, William Fisher. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License. May 24, 2011

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49 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Mnemonic devices Provide substantive information Generalized indicia of prestige Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of Confer market power and threaten competition

50 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Mnemonic devices Provide substantive information Generalized indicia of prestige Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of Confer market power and threaten competition Satisfy tastes for exclusivity (Kozinski)

51 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Mnemonic devices Provide substantive information Generalized indicia of prestige Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of Confer market power and threaten competition

52 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Mnemonic devices Provide substantive information Generalized indicia of prestige Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of Confer market power and threaten competition Increase the attractiveness of through sound, appearance, or connotation

53 Increase attractiveness through sound, appearance, or connotation Make the itself more attractive Harley-Davidson muffler sound; shape of Perrier bottle Evoke positive associations not attributable to another manufacturer Acura, Lexis, Nantucket T-shirts Evoke positive associations attributable to another manufacturer Rolls-Royce Radio Tubes; Gay Olympics

54 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Mnemonic devices Provide substantive information Generalized indicia of prestige Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of Confer market power and threaten competition Increase the attractiveness of through sound, appearance, or connotation

55 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Mnemonic devices Provide substantive information Generalized indicia of prestige Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of Confer market power and threaten competition Increase the attractiveness of through sound, appearance, or connotation Provide vehicles for conversation and parody

56 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Mnemonic devices Provide substantive information Generalized indicia of prestige Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of Confer market power and threaten competition Increase the attractiveness of through sound, appearance, or connotation Provide vehicles for conversation and parody Shape consumers preferences and attitudes

57 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Mnemonic devices Provide substantive information Generalized indicia of prestige Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of Confer market power and threaten competition Increase the attractiveness of through sound, appearance, or connotation Provide vehicles for conversation and parody Shape consumers preferences and attitudes undermine premise of signal theory: exogenous tastes

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60 Compilation of Original Virginia Slims TV Ads tobacco_leo23e00

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62 Cultural Critique Leads to Physically unhealthy or dangerous behavior Fosters consumerism, conspicuous consumption, materialism, envy, ennui

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64 Economic Critique Consumers pay the costs of -- and don t benefit from -- ads that merely stabilize market shares Artificial product differentiation facilitates oligopolistic pricing Artificial accentuation of consumer anxieties also facilitates monopoly pricing

65 From the Bayer homepage Myth: All aspirin are the same. Fact: While the active ingredient in aspirin may be the same, not all aspirin are subjected to the same stringent quality controls. Bayer Aspirin, which people have trusted for over 100 years, is required to meet some of the highest quality standards in the drug industry, going through 100 quality control checks. Source:

66 Political Critique Concentration of semiotic power Our understandings of masculinity, femininity, beauty, success, failure, pleasure, peace are controlled to a distressing extent by a small group of people who surely do not have our best interests at heart

67 Economic Defense Trademarks/advertising heightens our capacity to experience pleasure by increasing our awareness of the range of goods and services available to us and heightening our sensitivity to the variations among them Net effect: total pleasure is increased

68 Cultural Defense Leads to physically healthy behavior The liveliness and richness of western culture derives partly from the efflorescence of consumer goods

69 Political Defense Trademarks create a world-wide vocabulary and thus help to erode cultural and political barriers and suspicions If parody is permitted, trademarks provide the raw materials for decentralized cultural criticism -- the dispersion of semiotic power

70 Assessments of the Preference- Shaping Power of TMs and Ads Utilitarian Critique: artificial product differentiation & oligopolistic pricing Cultural Critique: Physically unhealthy and morally pernicious Political Critique: concentration of semiotic power Utilitarian Defense: increase of hedonic capacity & total social welfare Cultural Defense: potential health benefits & cultural richness Political Defense: common vocabulary & materials for semiotic democracy

71 Possible Alternatives to Trademarks Government certification of quality of goods USDA Grade A Beef Bar admissions Private certification of quality of goods Ebay variation

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82 Possible Alternatives to Trademarks Government certification of quality of goods Maple syrup Bar admissions Private certification of quality of goods Ebay variation

83 Possible Alternatives to Trademarks Government certification of quality of goods Maple syrup Bar admissions Private certification of quality of goods Ebay variation Warranties

84 Possible Alternatives to Trademarks Government certification of quality of goods Maple syrup Bar admissions Private certification of quality of goods Ebay variation Warranties Retailers as intermediaries

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87 What Do Trademarks Do? Identify sources of Mnemonic devices Provide substantive information Generalized indicia of prestige Reduce transaction costs Incentives to raise quality of Confer market power and threaten competition Increase the attractiveness of through sound, appearance, or connotation Provide vehicles for conversation and parody Shape consumers preferences and attitudes

88 End