REBRANDING REBRANDED

The Oxford English Dictionary’s Word of the Day (you too can sign up here) is “rebranding”. Nowadays associated with expensive exercises in making established brands seem cooler, often to little effect, the OED records the word as being used by a US Court in 1923. The Court stated:

“Since..the goods are to be condemned for misbranding, the court now makes it known that..the goods will not be released under bond to the owner merely for rebranding but only upon condition that the goods be re-examined and reclassed”.

It seems therefore that the original meaning involved a defendant altering the packaging of infringing goods so that they could be sold legally.



The IPKat says there’s nothing new under the sun.



More on rebranding here, here and here