Thefollowing appeared in my inbox at work today. A interesting emaildiscussion followed; some of the wittier comments from my coworkersare below.
Apparently, many other companies in this industry have also received similar notices.
In my mind, this is yet another example of when following the letter of the law runs contrary to following the spirit of it. True,it's one thing for a organization to protect its image or brand names from defamation, dilution orbeing portrayed in a negative light. But... where is the line drawn...? =P
From: *****
Sent: 2006年1月18日 23:48
To: *****
Cc: *****
Subject: Red Cross Emblem to be removed from all your productions
Importance: High
Hello,
We received a letter from the Red Cross informing us that some of our video games reproduce the Red Cross Emblem.
As you may know this symbol is internationally protected by the Geneva Convention which triggered the creation of the Red Cross Association. This symbol can only be used by the Red Cross in relation with its humanitarian activities. No product or services may use this logo. You may have seen products such as first aid kits or medical supplies featuring a red cross. They are actually illegally reproducing this logo.
Please therefore make sure to remove from all your projects the Red Cross (and Red Crescent if any) emblems you may have featured on in-game first aid kits or medical supplies.
For your information:
1/ blue cross, green cross logos are also protected in some territories and cannot be valid substitutes,
2/ any logo resembling or confusingly similar to the Red Cross Emblem is also prohibited.
We therefore recommend simply replacing the emblem with the First Aid mention on first aid kits for a quick and safe solution.
If there are uses of this emblem other than on first aid kits and medical supplies in our games under development, please let us know as soon as possible. This will enable us to both check whether these other uses are legal and prepare a complete guideline for you on this matter.
Thank you,
*****
Legal Counsel
*****
It isn't a red cross, it is a red plus symbol!
Its fucking retarded is what it is.
Hey
can we get them to sue
Maybe they were hoping for some kind of donation in order to say "ok, you can use "our" stupid symbol" ;)
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