Support for LAist comes from
Become a sponsor
We Explain L.A.
Donate
Stay Connected

LAist is part of Southern California Public Radio (SCPR), a member-supported public media network. Hear our news on-air at our partner site:

KPCC Logo

Live Stream Schedule In Person

Keep up with LAist

Our top stories delivered weeknights
Donate

Share This
News

Getting Ready for 'The Big Game'...

By  Christine N. Ziemba
Published Feb 4, 2006 11:00 PM
Stories like these are only possible with your help!
You have the power to keep local news strong for the coming months. Your financial support today keeps our reporters ready to meet the needs of our city. Thank you for investing in your community.
5b2be6b14488b3000926c615-original.jpg

Are you ready for “The Big Game?” Have you gotten your “Super Deals” to feed your guests for today’s pigskin contest?

LAist loves this time of year to watch the ways retailers bend over backwards to promote their specials for The Big Kahuna—the mother of all football games. They advertise to the masses in generic terms so they don’t have to pay a licensing fee to the NFL to use those two copyrighted words that together spell millions. (Rhymes with Shmooper Bowl).

The league is super vigilant when it comes to protecting this golden egg. According to a recent article in The Washington Post:

Support for LAist comes from
Become a sponsor
So the league employs teams of lawyers to hunt down the unauthorized and unlicensed. It finds miscreants through a loose network of informants -- sponsors, broadcasters, even news reporters -- and lets them know what they're in for (a lawsuit) if they don't cease and desist. Usually, the targets are small fish (among others, the NFL is after a Detroit club that is advertising a Super Bowl party featuring porn star Jenna Jameson), but a whale is out there. In 1999, the league won a court case against Coors, prohibiting the beer maker from calling itself "the Official Beer of NFL Players," a designation Coors had licensed from the NFL Players Association. Coors has made peace with the NFL; the company paid a reported $240 million in 2001 to become the league's official beer, a contract renewed this season. Not everyone has gotten the message. Centex Homes ran full-page ads in The Washington Post and other newspapers last week with headlines reading, "This Sunday some will plan a Super Bowl party." A spokesman for Centex said the company's ad agency was unaware that "Super Bowl" is a copyrighted phrase. He said the reference would be changed.

So we were astounded yesterday when prepping for our own football festivities. At a big grocery store here in LA (we’re not going to narc), there was a card above the cookies that read, “Get your cookies for the ‘Super Bowl.’” We almost tossed ours when reading that sign—these bakers had balls. We’re pretty sure they didn’t pay for the licensing, and if they were caught by the NFL, the grocer is a big enough outfit to pay the man.

Super Bowl. Super Bowl. Super Bowl. Super Bowl. There, we said it. Just because we can. This is a news site, so we’re not worried about getting any cease-and-desist orders from the National Football League.

We hope.

Photo from www.nfl.com