1 August 2012Trademarks

INTA conference, Washington DC

The International Trademark Association (INTA’s) 2012 conference in Washington DC, from May 5 to 9, was notable for a varied and timely programme, and the announcement of INTA’s Unreal campaign.

This campaign comes after research carried out in collaboration with market research company AMP Agency, and targets teenagers, initially in the US, to educate them about the realities of counterfeiting and piracy, as well enforcement efforts.

Using promotional films based on real stories (one includes an interview with a teenaged driver who crashed because of counterfeit brakepads) and a mix of social and traditional media to get the message across, the Unreal campaign was launched at INTA by Alan Drewsen, INTA’s executive director.

“Teens’ purchasing power will only increase over time, and they will soon be the next generation of consumers. With that in mind, we see a tremendous opportunity for INTA to arm teens with as much information about the economic, social and health risks involved with counterfeiting as possible,” said Drewsen.

“It is our hope that this information will influence their decision-making the next time they are approached by a site or vendor selling counterfeit goods.”

"SOMETIMES LAWYERS NEED TO CONVINCE THEIR CLIENTS THAT THEY DON’T NEED TO BE RIGHT, OR AT LEAST, THAT IT MIGHT NOT BE WORTH THEIR WHILE.”

Other conference highlights included a keynote speech at the opening ceremony from Leonard Lauder, chairman emeritus of The Estée Lauder Companies. Lauder told stories of his early days in the company, and of various fights over brands, some won and others settled.

His key theme was that sometimes it’s not worth fighting: sometimes lawyers need to convince their clients that they don’t need to be right, or at least, that it might not be worth their while.

This INTA conference was the largest ever, with 9,500 attendees. The social side of the event reflected that, with law firm receptions taking place in some of the most desirable locations in the city.

Highlights included Becerril Coca & Becerril on the roof of Charlie Palmer steakhouse, Duane Morris LLP at the Smithsonian American Art Museum and National Portrait Gallery and Dennemeyer’s 50th birthday party at the amazing National Air and Space Museum (pictured opposite). For night-owls, Arochi Marroquin & Lindner’s party at Andrew Mellon Auditorium was as lively as ever.

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