History Main / WritingAroundTradeMarks

* An early scene from ''WesternAnimation/MonstersInc'' featured Sully and Mike running into obvious Godzilla knock-off Ted on their way to work. According to the director's DVDCommentary, the original plan was to give a full ShoutOut complete with roar, but since they couldn't get the okay to do so, they went the other way and played the RuleOfFunny. You ''see'' a large reptilian leg but ''hear'' a giant chicken.

* The reason why Creator/MarvelComics made sure to publish a comic with a character named ComicBook/{{Captain Marvel|MarvelComics}} every few years was so that the trademark didn't lapse and Creator/DCComics couldn't swoop in and use it with ''[[ComicBook/{{Shazam}} their]]'' [[ComicBook/{{Shazam}} Captain Marvel]] (purchased from Creator/FawcettComics) -- the ''original'' Captain Marvel. DC renamed the character Shazam for good in 2011 "[[IAmNotShazam since that's what a lot of people thought he was called anyway]]". This has applied to several other Marvel characters: [[Characters/SpiderWomanTitleCharacter Spider-Woman]], Characters/{{Warlock|1967}} and Penance for example.

* Part of the reason why ''VisualNovel/TheGreatAceAttorney'' wasn't released outside of Japan during its initial 2015 release until its 2021 CompilationRerelease was due to the presence of Literature/SherlockHolmes as a major secondary protagonist, as while the series is perfectly within the Public Domain in Japan, it was a bit rockier in the United States. Eventually, the ''Literature/ArseneLupin'' route was taken and Holmes was renamed into Herlock Sholmes, along with John and Iris Watson into the Wilsons. Nothing else from the Holmes canon was changed, however; for instance, he still lives at 221B Baker Street and the characters directly named after those in the books such as [[Literature/AStudyInScarlet Enoch Drebber]] still retain their names in full. Additionally, the Strand Magazine is referred to as the ''Randst'' Magazine in both versions due to the actual Strand Magazine still being published past a 1998 revival.

* Part of the reason why ''VisualNovel/TheGreatAceAttorney'' wasn't released outside of Japan during its initial 2015 release until its 2021 CompilationRerelease was due to the presence of Literature/SherlockHolmes as a major secondary protagonist, as while the series is perfectly within the Public Domain in Japan, it's a lot rockier elsewhere. Eventually, the ''Literature/ArseneLupin'' route was taken and Holmes was renamed into Herlock Sholmes, along with John and Iris Watson into the Wilsons. Nothing else from the Holmes canon was changed, however; for instance, he still lives at 221B Baker Street and the characters directly named after those in the books such as [[Literature/AStudyInScarlet Enoch Drebber]] still retain their names in full. Additionally, the Strand Magazine is referred to as the ''Randst'' Magazine in both versions due to the actual Strand Magazine still being published past a 1998 revival.

We have a page about {{UsefulNotes/Trademark}}s if you're ''really'' interested in how they work and are used.

* On app stores and software distribution platforms, unofficial [[UsefulNotes/{{Emulation}} emulators]] tend to avoid mentions of trademarked video game console and/or software brands such as Nintendo and Sony, all despite previous legal precedent per the case with the commercial [=PlayStation=] emulator bleem!. This is mostly due to Nintendo's litigious nature as while they are for the most part unable to take down individual emulators per se (due to them avoiding the inclusion of copyrighted code and/or firmware images), they could see the use of their trademarks as leverage against emulator authors.

* When Marvel brought UsefulNotes/{{the Golden Age|OfComicBooks}} hero Amazing-Man into their continuity, they were forced to change his moniker to the Prince of Orphans thanks to DC now having a [[ComicBook/JusticeSocietyOfAmerica JSA]] character with the name Amazing-Man ([[LegacyCharacter several of them, in fact]]). They can still use his civilian name of Johan Aman, though.
* The ''ComicBook/MarvelNOW'' ''[[ComicBook/TheAvengersJonathanHickman Avengers]]'' relaunch introduced a new hero named Smasher, who has the civilian identity of Izzy Dare. It was initially heavily implied that she was the granddaughter of British comic book hero ComicStrip/DanDare, but subsequent reprints and collections of her debut issue [[OrwellianRetcon retroactively declared Izzy's last name to be "Kane"]] instead, revealing that her granddad was actually the [[UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks Golden Age]] hero Captain Terror.

* ''Film/Deadpool2016'' features an appearance from Bob, Agent of Hydra, who as his name implies, works for ComicBook/{{Hydra}} in the comics. However, since Hydra is part of the ''Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse'' (having appeared in the various ''Captain America'' and ''Avengers'' movies), and this was about two years before Disney (owner of Marvel) bought out Fox's film rights (Fox had the rights to Deadpool), the movie omitted any reference to Bob being a Hydra agent (he's very clearly shown to be an agent of ''something''; what it is is never referred to).

** The World's Fair scene in ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger'' features a cameo from Jim Hammond, the Golden Age ComicBook/HumanTorch, which also doubles as an ActorAllusion to Creator/ChrisEvans's previous role as Johnny Storm, the Human Torch of the ComicBook/FantasticFour, in the ''Film/FantasticFourDuology''. As Marvel Studios did not have the rights to the Fantastic Four (and thus the rights to use the name "Human Torch") at the time, Hammond only appears in in his test tube and is labeled as the "Synthetic Man".

* Since the advent of [[Wrestling/ImpactWrestling TNA]] and the various independent promotions in the United States, the names of wrestlers who jump ship from one promotion to another can often change because of trademark claims. One of the most famous subversions of this is Jay Reso: while employed by WWE, he was known as Wrestling/{{Christian}}. When he left the company, thanks to owning the trademark to his pre-WWE name -- Christian Cage -- he was able to use that name elsewhere. (When he returned to WWE, he dropped the "Cage" and went back to just "Christian".) Other examples:

* ''VideoGame/ANNOMutationem'' was originally developed to be an Website/SCPFoundation game like ''VideoGame/SCPContainmentBreach''. It was reworked into an original property in order to avoid potential issues with the SCP IP, while still maintaining references of the original marker, such as renaming Sigurros (SCP-239) into Sigrid and keeping her RealityWarping powers, and using the design of The Reptile (SCP-682) while referring it as The Varanus.

** "Covercraft" briefly uses a game called Stack-O as a replacement for Toys/{{Jenga}}.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheVentureBrothers'':

* A 2023 commercial for holiday programming on the Canadian channel WildBrainTV begins with the Nickelodeon Movies logo from ''Film/SnowDay'', but with the Nickelodeon logo edited out and replaced with a generic snowball instead, presumably for copyright reasons as the channel is not owned by or affiliated with Nickelodeon.

* ''Webcomic/{{Sonichu}}'' acquired infamy for many, '''many''' reasons, but notably combining Pikachu and [[Franchise/{{Sonic|TheHedgehog}} to create the titular, technically copyright-free character. While the copyright-free claims are dubious, the comic still features a lot of copyrighted {{Franchise/Pokemon}} characters.

* The trailer for ''Series/LegendsOfTomorrow'' has Rip Hunter tell the gathered heroes that he's seen "[[Franchise/{{Superman}} Men of Steel]] die and [[Franchise/{{Batman}} Dark Knights]] fall." This is because Creator/TheCW was not at the time allowed to use those two characters in the "Series/{{Arrowverse}}". Superman has since appeared on ''Supergirl'' and received [[Series/SupermanAndLois his own show]], and Batman appeared in the ''Series/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths2019'' crossover.

* Some of the games included in ''VideoGame/ClubhouseGames: 51 Worldwide Classics'' are based on popular trademarked games, but have been slightly tweaked to get around copyrights. For example, Last Card is a variation of {{TabletopGame/Uno}}, and ''Connect Four'' is referred to as "four in a row".

* ''Webcomic/{{Sonichu}}'' acquired infamy for many, '''many''' reasons, but notably combining Pikachu and [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog Sonic]] to create the titular, technically copyright-free character. While the copyright-free claims are dubious, the comic still features a lot of copyrighted {{Franchise/Pokemon}} characters.

* ''Manga/HitomiChanIsShyWithStrangers'': At one point in chapter 42, Kaoru gets Hitomi and Yuu to play some kind of video game. While the controllers are mostly covered up by the characters' hands, what little we can see indicates that they're UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch controllers.

* ''Film/AngryVideoGameNerdTheMovie'' is about the Nerd investigating the story behind the infamous UsefulNotes/{{Atari 2600}} game, ''VideoGame/ETTheExtraTerrestrial''. Except in the film, the game is presented as "[=EeeTee=]: The Extra-Special Alien". The review at the end of the movie was later released as an episode of [[WebVideo/TheAngryVideoGameNerd the original show]], with the [=EeeTee=] presentation removed and the real ''E.T.'' being shown.

* ''VideoGame/BanjoTooie'': In the original UsefulNotes/Nintendo64 version, Kazooie tells Loggo, a talking toilet, that he should call a plumber to get himself unclogged, and suggests [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Mario]]. In the UsefulNotes/XboxLiveArcade port, because Creator/{{Rare}} no longer works under Creator/{{Nintendo}}, Mario is merely alluded to as "That Well-Known Italian one."

* The CompilationRerelease ''Disney Classic Games: {{VideoGame/Aladdin|VirginGames}} and VideoGame/TheLionKing'' doesn't refer to the UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis, UsefulNotes/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem, or UsefulNotes/GameBoy by name, instead using the terms "Console S" (as in "Sega"), "Console N" (as in "Nintendo"), and "Handheld" due to the consoles' names being trademarks of their manufacturers.

** [[CommonKnowledge It was commonly believed]] that Sega renamed their [[UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis Mega Drive]] console the [[MarketBasedTitle Genesis]] in North America because another company, a manufacturer of hard disk drives, had already trademarked the name "Mega Drive". However, this was not actually the case; Sega co-founder David Rosen didn't care for the Mega Drive name and renamed it "Genesis", seeing the console as representing "a new beginning" for the company.
** The European logo for the UsefulNotes/SegaDreamcast was changed to blue from orange due to the German game company Tivola already using an orange swirl as their logo.

* Since Creator/{{Nintendo}} trademarked the word UsefulNotes/{{Wii}}, any game on the system trying for that name but made by a different company would have to do something similar, like ''VideoGame/WeCheer'' or ''We Ski.''

* ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'' usually avoids naming any distinctive looking technology, including Steven's [[UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube purple cube-shaped gaming system with small CDs]] which plays fictional games besides [[VideoGame/AnimalCrossing one with a cover of small animal people]] we never get to see. When Steven moves out in the finale he leaves behind a box with "his game stuff", though this time its a system transparently resembling the UsefulNotes/Nintendo64, including its infamous controllers.

* The Franchise/StarWarsExpandedUniverse has a weird meta-example. The ''ComicBook/TalesOfTheJedi'' comic series featured a story arc ''The Tale of Nomi Sunrider'' and the eponymous character went off to become pretty important (as in "Head of the Jedi Order in the current era"-important), as did her relatives. However, a real-life company came up with a claim for "Sunrider" and Lucasfilm reacted enough for some legal issues to arise. For the following years Sunrider family was pretty much forgotten and most notably suspiciously absent from the ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'' video game, which references about everything else from the ''TOTJ'' series. (Most prominently, the character eventually named Bastila Shan was originally supposed to be Vima Sunrider, an established character from ''TOTJ''.) Lately, however, Lucasfilm clarified that the agreement was reached that allowed Sunriders to appear and be mentioned within stories themselves, as long as the name does not appear in the title of the work in any way. The strangest part, though, is that nobody seems to know who the real-life company that made the dispute ''is'', or what kind of claim they actually had to the "Sunrider" name. Nomi appears in ''VideoGame/TheOldRepublic'', but appears under the name "Nomi Da Boda".

* Similar to ''Film/TheHobbit'' example in film section, ''VideoGame/TheLordOfTheRingsOnline'' uses flashbacks to show Sauron is his beautiful form, which he used to beguile the Elves into crafting Rings of Power. He used the name "Annatar", but the works that mention it are not covered by the game's license, so a close Sindarin form of "Antheron" is used instead.

* Although the cute ArtificialIntelligence {{spider tank}}s from ''Manga/GhostInTheShell'' were called Fuchikomas in the original 1989 manga, the developers of the 1997 UsefulNotes/PlayStation video game adaptation were apparently able to trademark the name and likeness of the Fuchikomas. This is why later adaptations of [=GitS=] have to resort to {{Captain Ersatz}}es: Tachikomas in ''Stand Alone Complex'', Uchikomas in ''Solid State Society'', and Logicomas in ''Arise''.

* This was the reason ''VideoGame/TalesOfEternia'' was released as ''VideoGame/TalesOfDestiny II'' in the US. It made things confusing when an actual ''VideoGame/TalesOfDestiny2'' came out for the [=PS2=]: [[Franchise/MastersOfTheUniverse Mattel]] already had "Eternia" trademarked.[[note]]Although the actual Tales of Destiny 2 [[NoExportForYou never left Japan]], and when Tales of Eternia was [[LateExportForYou finally]] released in Europe on the UsefulNotes/PlayStationPortable, the original name was kept.[[/note]]

* When the [[Franchise/DisneyPrincess Disney Princesses]] made an appearance in ''WesternAnimation/RalphBreakstheInternet'', [[{{WesternAnimation/Brave}} Merida]] is portrayed in the movie as being TheUnintelligible, due to her "being from [[{{Creator/Pixar}} the other studio."]]

* In the ''ComicBook/{{Youngblood}}'' team's first appearance, Badrock's codename was "Bedrock". Creator/RobLiefeld decided to change the name to avoid confusion with the setting of ''WesternAnimation/TheFlintstones'' (after a visit from Creator/HannaBarbera's lawyers.)

'''Captain Hero:''' I should have known you were behind this, Mickey *Beep*.

** If a character has a name that is distinct and easy to trademark like "ComicBook/SpiderMan," "ComicBook/CaptainAmerica," "[[Characters/IncredibleHulkBruceBanner The Incredible Hulk]]," "[[Characters/MarvelComicsMagneto Magneto]]," "[[Characters/MarvelComicsThanos Thanos]]," "[[Characters/MarvelComicsDoctorDoom Doctor Doom]]," "Characters/{{Deadpool|WadeWilson}}," "[[ComicBook/MsMarvel2014 Ms. Marvel]]," "Characters/LukeCage" or "Characters/ShangChi," they are usually fine. However, characters with names taken from preexisting terms or real world things are harder to trademark, usually leading to their names being presented as something like "[[Characters/CaptainAmericaHeroes Marvel's Falcon]]," "[[Characters/MarvelComicsBeast Marvel's Beast]]," "[[Characters/MarvelComicsValkyrior Marvel's Valkyrie]]," "[[Characters/MarvelComicsRogue Marvel's Rogue]]," "[[Characters/DominoMarvelComics Marvel's Domino]]," "[[Characters/IronManHeroes Marvel's War Machine]]," "[[Characters/TheWasp Marvel's Wasp]]," "[[Characters/XMen90sMembers Marvel's Jubilee]]," "[[Characters/BlackCatMarvelComics Marvel's Black Cat]]" or "[[Characters/MarvelComicsSunspot Marvel's Sunspot]]" on the packaging for legal reasons.

** ''VideoGame/LegoMarvelSuperHeroes'' was created before the executive order went out, so it featured characters from both franchises prominently. So when [[VideoGame/LegoMarvelSuperHeroes2 the sequel]] was produced after the order went into effect, a lot of dancing around names and references had to be done in order to tie back to the first game. For example, Nick Fury vaguely brings up "the last purple-hatted cosmic tyrant" that came to Earth in reference to the first game's BigBad, [[Characters/MarvelComicsGalactus Galactus]]. And when Gwenpool finds out she will be narrating the game's bonus missions, she asks about "[[ComicBook/{{Deadpool}} the guy who did it last time]]".

* When the [[Franchise/DisneyPrincess Disney Princesses]] made an appearance in ''WesternAnimation/RalphBreakstheInternet, [[{{WesternAnimation/Brave}} Merida]] is portrayed in the movie as being TheUnintelligible, due to her "being from [[{{Creator/Pixar}} the other studio."]]

* Thorn was originally the name of Rose's alter ego on ''WesternAnimation/AmericanDragonJakeLong''. Turns out the dual identity "Rose and Thorn" already belonged to a DC superhero, and many episodes in the first season had to be re-recorded, changing the name "Thorn" to "Huntsgirl". Thorn is still used in plenty of {{Fora}} and FanFiction.

* ''Series/{{Castle}}'':

* In the ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGo'' special "Warner Bros. 100th Anniversary" [[Franchise/HarryPotter Hogwarts]] makes an appearance, but is never referred to by name, instead just being called a castle, which is a bit odd since Hogwarts is trademarked by Warner Bros., and ''Teen Titans Go!'' is produced by Creator/Warner BrosAnimation.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGo'' special "Warner Bros. 100th Anniversary" [[Franchise/HarryPotter Hogwarts]] makes an appearance, but is never referred to by name, instead just being called a castle.

** Due to changes in international ratings systems around 2020 that prohibited 18+ and non-18+ games from being promoted alongside one another, promotional materials for ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'' were unable to directly name any 18+ games. This meant that the introductions of Mii costumes like [[Franchise/AssassinsCreed Altair]] and [[Franchise/{{Doom}} Doom Slayer]] didn't show the usual ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'' X {franchise} graphic but instead used the characters' names written in a generic font. (This also affects [[VideoGame/{{Tekken}} Kazuya]] on the European website, though not in-game.) T-rated games are allowed to be mentioned, but -- probably also due to these changes -- feature disclaimers clarifying as much. Thus, ''Ultimate'' [[SubvertedTrope subverts]] the DemographicDissonantCrossover trope in this instance, though the game also plays that crossover trope straight with playable characters from 18+ games. The Japanese versions of the trailers are unaffected by this.