Quote Originally Posted by Straf View Post
The reverse is also true though. A hoover became a generic term for a vacuum cleaner. I believe there are places in the USA where Coke is a generic term for soda/pop. "Coke please?" "What would you like?" "7UP." When a brand name becomes the vernacular could a brand owner sue a retailer for selling a customer a different brand? What if I asked a sales assistant to see their range of hoovers and ended up walking away with a Panasonic?
The answer is yes, if the copyright holder sues in time. Perhaps you have noticed that in the US bars no longer throw SuperBowl parties? And commercials for products no longer refer to it as a "SuperBowl Sale" or anything else with "SuperBowl" in it? That's because about 10 (?) years ago the NFL started enforcing its' copyright with C&D's and lawsuits.