After more than seven years, 70 witnesses, and thousands of exhibits, a verdict has been reached in the roller-coaster “Bratz” dolls trial. The trial (Bryant v. Mattel, 04-09049, U.S. District Court, Central District of California) pitted toy making giants Mattell, Inc. against Van Nuys based MGA Entertainment, Inc. over the rights to the wildly popular…

Apparently, Orange County-based surf/skate company Volcom finds Jay Z’s Roc Nation label’s logo a little too close for comfort. The clothing designer recently filed a trademark infringement suit (Volcom Inc. (VLCM), v. Roc Nation LLC, 8:11-cv-00489-JST-FFM, U.S. District Court, Central District of California). The suit arises over the use of an inverted “double diamond” design…

Recently, Twitter suspended two of its affiliates Twidroid and Uber Twitter for alleged trademark infringement and privacy violations. The interesting thing is that it appears that UberMedia, the owner and operator of the third-party Twitter applications Twidroid and Uber Twitter, is buying up a roster of apps that may possibly compete with Twitter in the…

Happy Birthday! To Thomas Alva Edison that is. Who knew his middle name was Alva? He is 164 year old this year today, so Google has celebrated his B-Day with a doodle encapsulating his best inventions. Google has been known to use some interesting logos on particular holidays or other special days. Edison’s birthday is…

P.Diddy Opposes “Ididdy” Headphones Pacific Rim, Inc., maker of a new brand of headphones for iPods and iPhones, apparently isn’t too familiar with pop culture, and possible trademark conflicts with its new “iDiddy” headphones. Rapper P.Diddy (or Diddy) was quick on the draw to oppose the mark with the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board of…

In the last few years, games such as Rock Band and Guitar Hero have turned everyday Joe’s into rock stars. Following this trend, the new toy guitars called “Paper Jamz” feature pre-programmed songs that can be played with ease by pretty much anyone with two hands. Apparently some ‘real’ guitar makers aren’t too crazy about…

The end of the year is still a few months off, but Time magazine has decided to call it early… Last week, Time issued its annual “50 Best Inventions”article. It’s an interesting and fun look at (arguably) the cream of this year’s crop of ingenuity and creativity. Some of these inventions, like the iPad and…

Think you have a good idea? The Emmy and Telly-Award-winning PBS television show “Everyday Edisons” announced recently that it is currently casting for its fourth season, set to air summer of 2011. The program is looking for 10 small-time inventors with big ideas. According to their Web site, www.edisonnation.com: They will pick 10 outstanding innovations….

Among the already-raunchy assortment of reality TV shows, the new “Rehab: Party at the Hard Rock Hotel” is pushing the envelope. And the Hard Rock Cafe International, Inc. chain (a different company than Las Vegas Hard Rock Hotel & Casino) doesn’t find the debauchery very entertaining. The Hard Rock Café recently filed a law suit…