2008 Woodie Awards
UT lost big on 'Saw 'Em Off' settlement
By: Travis Holland
Issue date: 6/27/07 Section: Opinion
"Let's be as ridiculous as possible."
That must have been what went through the minds of the University of Texas' lawyers on Monday. If you haven't heard, the settlement in the "Saw 'Em Off" logo case resulted in a modified logo, featuring three new dots of white paint. Wow.
UT's original claim for suing the T-shirt maker was that people would mistake the symbol for the university's trademarked logo. As dumb as that is, it worked.
But the new logo is barely different - good job t.u., you spent millions on lawyers for three dots of paint. What a steal.
But don't laugh yet - it gets even better. The changes made to the logo make it look more like UT's mascot, Bevo, than ever before. Now, instead of sawing off the horns of a trademark, the popular shirts will depict a drawing that looks more like the school's real mascot. The new image has a white blaze on the forehead, almost identical to the one on UT's steer. That couldn't have turned out much better.
The only real shame in the whole situation is the $25,000 settlement UT will receive. It won't put a dent in their legal fees, but hey, at least now none of us Aggies will confuse the "Saw 'Em Off" logo for genuine t.u. merchandise.
That must have been what went through the minds of the University of Texas' lawyers on Monday. If you haven't heard, the settlement in the "Saw 'Em Off" logo case resulted in a modified logo, featuring three new dots of white paint. Wow.
UT's original claim for suing the T-shirt maker was that people would mistake the symbol for the university's trademarked logo. As dumb as that is, it worked.
But the new logo is barely different - good job t.u., you spent millions on lawyers for three dots of paint. What a steal.
But don't laugh yet - it gets even better. The changes made to the logo make it look more like UT's mascot, Bevo, than ever before. Now, instead of sawing off the horns of a trademark, the popular shirts will depict a drawing that looks more like the school's real mascot. The new image has a white blaze on the forehead, almost identical to the one on UT's steer. That couldn't have turned out much better.
The only real shame in the whole situation is the $25,000 settlement UT will receive. It won't put a dent in their legal fees, but hey, at least now none of us Aggies will confuse the "Saw 'Em Off" logo for genuine t.u. merchandise.
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