Law Commons^™

Tomorrow Never Dies: The Protection Of Fictional Characters Under The Federal Trademark Dilution Act, Kristen Knudsen

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

A number of different protections are available for fictional characters under intellectual property law. These have traditionally included copyright, trademark, and unfair competition, or some combination thereof. Another avenue of protection can be found in state dilution statutes, which prohibit unauthorized uses of characters that could harm their reputations, such as by "blurring" their ability to indicate one source, or by "tarnishing" their commercial value. This harm may occur even where there is no likelihood of public confusion, and even where the use is on a noncompeting good. Many commentators have criticized state dilution theories, however, as contravening the purposes …