Opinion ID: 4521052
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Trademark Dilution by Tarnishment

Text: When the use of a mark is “noncommercial,” there can be no dilution by tarnishment. 15 U.S.C. § 1125(c)(3)(C); see A.R.S. § 44-1448.01(C)(2). Speech is noncommercial “if it does more than propose a commercial transaction,” Nissan Motor Co. v. Nissan Comput. Corp., 378 F.3d 1002, 1017 (9th Cir. 2004) (quoting MCA Records, 296 F.3d at 906), and contains some “protected expression,” MCA Records, 296 F.3d at 906. Thus, use of a mark may be “noncommercial” even if used to “sell” a product. See Nissan Motor Co., 378 F.3d at 1017; MCA Records, 296 F.3d at 906. Although VIP used JDPI’s trade dress and bottle design to sell Bad Spaniels, they were also used to convey a humorous message. That message, as set forth in Part II.C above, is protected by the First Amendment. VIP therefore was entitled to judgment in its favor on the federal and state law dilution claims. See Nissan Motor Co., 378 F.3d at 1017; MCA Records, 296 F.3d at 906. 2 If the plaintiff satisfies one of the Rogers elements, “it still must prove that its trademark has been infringed by showing that the defendant’s use of the mark is likely to cause confusion.” See Gordon, 909 F.3d at 265; see also Louis Vuitton Malletier, 507 F.3d at 260 (noting that the application of likelihood-of-confusion factors “depend[s] to a great extent on whether its products and marks are successful parodies”). VIP PRODUCTS V. JACK DANIEL’S PROPERTIES 13