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| {{stub}}
| | #redirect [[Intellectual_Property,_Copyright,_and_related_rights#Genericised_trademarks]] |
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| '''Genericised trademarks''' / generic trademark refer to [[trademarks]] (typically brand names) that became an everyday term.
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| Note that it having become an everyday term does not mean the trademark is not enforceable,
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| though it is not always great PR to do so.
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| See also the closely related '''trademark erosion''', a.k.a. genericization or genericide,
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| referring to variants where the trademark is effectively lost (due to [[Intellectual_Property,_Copyright,_and_related_rights#IP.27s_practical_concepts|its practical requirements]]).
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| Examples of genericised trademarks include
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| : Band-Aid (for an adhesive bandage),
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| : Kleenex (for absorbent tissues),
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| : Google/googling as a verb meaning 'searching the web',
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| : Velcro (for hook-and-loop fastener),
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| : Chapstick (for lip balm),
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| : Tupperware (for plastic food storage),
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| : Crock-pot (for any slow cooker),
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| : [[kapton]] (for polyamide tape),
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| : Windbreaker,
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| : Post-Its (for sticky notes),
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| : Popsicle (for ice pops),
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| : Hoover (for vacuuming),
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| : Xerox (for copying, named for the copying machines, though this one is relatively local, and may now be falling out of style),
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| : Q-tip (for cotton swabs),
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| : Alka-Selzer (for antacids),
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| : [[Styrofoam]] (for polystyrene foam),
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| : [[Plexiglas]] (for polymethyl methacrylate),
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| : Ouija board (for a spirit board),
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| : Softies (microphone wind protection),
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| : hacky sack (for footbags),
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| : Sharpie (for permanent markers),
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| : TASER,
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| : Frisbee,
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| : Hula-hoop,
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| : Jacuzzi,
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| : Zamboni
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| and many others.
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| Note that various can be understood both generically, or to the original product - e.g. a Sharpie may be a permanent marker, but many people will still mean the specific branded one when they say Sharpie.
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| Also things like bubble wrap, jet ski, dumpster, and onesies.
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| These were arguably more descriptive to start with, and only distinctive enough to be recognized as useful ''names'', but not necessarily distinctive enough to be clearly recognizable as a brand.
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| <!--
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| There are also misnaming things
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| e.g. Formica when not referring to the specific laminate
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| -->
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