Quote:
Originally Posted by Singerlady
A littlfe knitpicky? We all knew what the OP meant.
|
"Nit-picky is an informal way to describe someone who is overly focused on tiny, unimportant details, especially when criticizing something. It can also be used to describe such criticism. Nitpick (or nit-pick) is a verb meaning to point out the very minor flaws or mistakes in something, or to criticize it in this way." from dictionary.com
Realtor is a trademark. Trademarks can be significant and valuable intellectual property.
"While a generic term cannot become a trademark, a trademark can become generic. Ironically, the more successful the trademark owner, the more likely it is that a trademark will become generic, causing the trademark owner to lose its exclusive right to use and protect the trademark. A trademark can become “genericized” if the mark becomes identified with a type of product or service in the public's mind, rather than a particular brand.
Aspirin, yo-yos, and cellophane became generic through consumer misuse of the trademarks to refer to these products. Their owners (respectively Bayer AG, Dupont Cellophane Co., and Duncan Toys Co.) lost their trademark rights in spite of their efforts to police the use of the marks.
Xerox is frequently used as an example of a trademark that was once threatened with becoming generic because of misuse. Xerox needed to advertise and encourage consumers to use “photocopying” rather than “Xeroxing” in order to stop misuse of its mark, and at least for now it remains a trademark."
Generic Terms Under U.S. Trademark Law | Justia