Country Squire's Middle Earth Series to be Renamed.

[FLDRD]

Also, inheritance shouldn't be a thing to look down on but a thing that should be aspired to IMO.

 

[username]

I just remembered that this issue with naming a blend after a LOTR blend isn't that unique.

Who remembers the SPC blend Pike Place? They had to take it off the market and stop using the name after getting sued by the owners of the Pike Place Market in Seattle.

McClelland also had to change blue mountain to Balkan blue for a simular reason

 

[grimpuffer]

On one hand, I could careless because I never really went for a name when it came to Pipe Tobacco. I would look up reviews and then make a judgement call.

Sure, being a fan of LoTR, when I would see a highly recommended shop that carried something like that, I would always investigate.

For example, one of my favorite that fit into this same situation was For Him house blend of Shortcut to Mushrooms. Delicious blend. Looked up the reviews, saw how many people liked it and ordered an ounce and then many more.

On the other, I find it funny that certain entities, and countries, laugh in the face of this type of thing and just dare the owner of the IP to do something about it. There is one country that blatantly does this and faces no real repercussions. Seems like it always comes down to money and power.

But I do agree with the consensus that, if I came up with something and it was successful and others started using it to make money, then I too would shut that down.

Its like those YouTube reaction videos. People just play other content creator's videos, react to them, and make money. Missed out on that money train.

 

[jpberg]

Suckers fall for the name all the time, power of suggestion. Take for instance the Vanilla Cherry aromatic called Hobbit's Weed. *I used to watch bearded, aro hating, manly men, smoking that goopy vanilla cherry shit in the lounge all the time. But, change the name of that blend to Tranny in a Tutu, and I will guarantee you that same guy won't smoke it. All of those LOTR blends... someone just put the name on something, and the smoker's imagination makes the connection. Hell, the imaginary story takes place somewhere else besides our reality. What they call tobacco could be lemon grass or freaking basil for all we know.

Oh you just pissed off the entire Instagram Bearded Men of Manliness contingent, the JRRT nerds, and the pipe bears all in one fell swoop.
The real world implications are nil, but the furor in many parents basements will be powerful tonight.

 

[jaytex1969]

The internet rocks!

 

[jpberg]

The internet rocks!

View attachment 249442

I found that blend a bit nutty, yet approachable.

 

[HawkeyeLinus]

Are they just having to rename the middle-earth series, as "Middle-Earth" is copyrighted? Surely the JRRT estate hasn't copyrighted "green dragon" and such.

Bruce Lee’s heirs own that, but only on St. Patrick’s Day.

 

[Hillcrest]

IIRC, in the Letters of Tolkien, somewhere, he discusses with the publishers that they missed the boat on copyright in England so when the American version of the books were to be published they copyrighted everything. What upset Tolkien is a pre-version of fan fiction where people in England and Europe were writing and publishing their own stories using his characters and place names and they were writing what he considered garbage and making money. Now fan fiction is a huge internet business.

I would think the names would be easy to change and still keep their customer base.
Green Dragon - Envious Drake
Old Toby (Tobias Hornblower) - Trumpeteer
Second breakfast - Brunch
Kingsfoil - Royal Flower
etc., etc.

 

[anotherbob]

As someone who produces IP for a living, and relies on the protections afforded by copyright law to make that living, I wholeheartedly and vociferously disagree with you. Squatting on, and deriving benefits from someone else’s labor is theft. And pretty slimey theft at that. If these tobacco blends were so wonderful, they would sell just fine with names like “Number One” or “I Like It”. They wouldn’t need to lean on someone else’s creative talent to sell them.

not only that but with an IP a product can appear to be sanctioned or official by using a name. Which can damage the IP in a way.

 

[anotherbob]

Will the memes stop now too ?

View attachment 249094

they're pretty much protected under satire. Which is really extra important in part because if it wasn't the legal system could easily be abused to attack bad reviews including those of political figures. Law is fun when you don't have to deal with the wrong end of it.

 

[Carol]

IIRC, in the Letters of Tolkien, somewhere, he discusses with the publishers that they missed the boat on copyright in England so when the American version of the books were to be published they copyrighted everything. What upset Tolkien is a pre-version of fan fiction where people in England and Europe were writing and publishing their own stories using his characters and place names and they were writing what he considered garbage and making money. Now fan fiction is a huge internet business.

I would think the names would be easy to change and still keep their customer base.
Green Dragon - Envious Drake
Old Toby (Tobias Hornblower) - Trumpeteer
Second breakfast - Brunch
Kingsfoil - Royal Flower
etc., etc.

Those are some good names. I especially like"Trumeteer". On this same subject, how does MM get away with having "Shire" names, "Elf Cobbit", "Dwarf, etc. Or do they maybe pay royalties. I don't know how this stuff works.

 

[AroEnglish]

Those are some good names. I especially like"Trumeteer". On this same subject, how does MM get away with having "Shire" names, "Elf Cobbit", "Dwarf, etc. Or do they maybe pay royalties. I don't know how this stuff works.

Cobbit might fall under the satire/parody clause. I think the terms elf and dwarf are public domain.

 

[Carol]

Cobbit might fall under the satire/parody clause. I think the terms elf and dwarf are public domain.

Yeah, that makes sense.

 

[wolflarsen]

Who remembers Shortcut to Mushrooms from Just For Him? Another one named from LOTR.
I think it disappeared because McClelland Red Cake was a primary ingredient. I smoked quite a bit of it circa 2016 or so. Still have almost a pound buried in the jar stacks. Talking about it now makes me want to dig a jar out and see how it's aged.

 

[Hillcrest]

Those are some good names. I especially like"Trumeteer". On this same subject, how does MM get away with having "Shire" names, "Elf Cobbit", "Dwarf, etc. Or do they maybe pay royalties. I don't know how this stuff works.

Companies could easily buy a license from the estate to make it legal and contractual. But I bet its awfully expensive and may be cost prohibitive.

 

[Hillcrest]

Cobbit might fall under the satire/parody clause. I think the terms elf and dwarf are public domain.

Dwarf is not in the LOTR books. Tolkien was a philologist and explained that the plrual of Dwarve was Dwarves not Dwarf and Dwarfs and despised those words as incorrect. He insisted it that Dwarve not be corrected to Dwarf or Dwarfs because it was wrong.

 

[AroEnglish]

Dwarf is not in the LOTR books. Tolkien was a philologist and explained that the plrual of Dwarve was Dwarves not Dwarf and Dwarfs and despised those words as incorrect. He insisted it that Dwarve not be corrected to Dwarf or Dwarfs because it was wrong.

Thanks! I knew about the Dwarves but always thought the singular was Dwarf. Fool of an AroEnglish!

 

[brooklynpiper]

Shortbutt Leaf
Young Tommy
Pauper Saran

 

[Hillcrest]

Shortbutt Leaf
Young Tommy
Pauper Saran

Bowl of Doom
Vertically Challenged Leaf
Bridge Dweller Blend
Wizard Breath Blend

 

[jguss]

Dwarf is not in the LOTR books. Tolkien was a philologist and explained that the plrual of Dwarve was Dwarves not Dwarf and Dwarfs and despised those words as incorrect. He insisted it that Dwarve not be corrected to Dwarf or Dwarfs because it was wrong.

This whole debate has been rendered moot by our more enlightened age where little persons are now referred to as vertically challenged or differentially heighted. How Tolkien would have relished the linguistic acrobatics of our time.