Every so often, a corporate lawyer needs to be slapped.
This was my first reaction when I read about the U.S. Postal Service’s cease-and-desist letter against a Seattle-based band that was calling itself “The Postal Service.”
Ironically, band members Ben Gibbard and Jimmy Tamborello chose their name to commemorate how they crafted “Give Up,” an album they released in 2003. Gibbard, who is based in Seattle, and Tamborello, who lives in Los Angeles, wrote the songs by mailing the tracks back and forth, building on each others’ work.
The band’s lyrics and tunes are, by and large, electronic pop ballads. One set of lyrics in ten viewed contained an oblique reference to cocaine, but most of the other songs were about longing.
Lyrics such as “I wanted to walk through the empty streets/And feel something constant under my feet/But all the news reports recommended that/I stay indoors/Because the air outside will make our cells/Divide at an alarming rate until our shells/Simply cannot hold all our insides in/And that's when we'll explode/(and it won't be a pretty sight)/And we'll become silhouettes when our bodies finally go/Ba ba ba...” really don’t seem to meet the “tarnishing” criteria of dilution of the U.S. Postal Service’s trademark.
If they are, then I owe a hell of a lot of money to Pat Kilbride over his 1995 “Loose Cannon” album.
As for the “blurring” criteria, which covers the possibility of confusion between what each entity offers, all it would take to negate this is dropping 100,000 carrier-route-sorted circulars on Gibbard and Tamborello’s front lawns. If they get delivered, there’s a dilution. If not…
Perhaps the U.S.P.S was considering clearing the way for current Postmaster General John Potter and former PMGs William Henderson and Marvin Runyon to go on the road as a power trio. Wotthehell, if Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker can announce a Cream reunion in 2005, anything’s possible, right?
This story does have a happy ending. Gary Thuro, who handles licensing and promotion for the U.S. Postal Service, recognized a cross-marketing opportunity. He pulled lawyers for both the Postal Service and the band together. The band got to keep its name, and Gibbard and Tambrello played at the PMG’s National Executive Conference in Washington earlier this month. Finally, the group’s CD is featured in the U.S.P.S.’s online store.
The amicable settlement likely prevented further aggravation between the parties. Gibbard and Tamborello, when initially hit with the cease-and-desist order, mulled a number of alternate names for the group.
Their number one choice? “Postal Cervix.”
To respond to the opinions in this column, please contact e-mail: rlevey@primediabusiness.com
