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Comment by mikedmiked | Hacker News Reader

"Summer of sport spirit" actually has a nice ring to it.

I wonder about the allowance of typos? Could I sell merchandise with "Olympix" or "London 2k12"?

Based on my experience with VANOC well in advance of the Winter Olympics here in Vancouver - NO. I was in the process of making Olympic Anagram T-shirts (Olympian = Palimony) etc. and they threatened to destroy my life if any of my ART was found being sold online, on the street or on Mars. True.

Also, given that the Olympics have become a political battering ram to push through, at all levels of government, any project at any cost at any consequence in the future, the answer is still - NO.

Ridiculous argument.

1) You elect your government.

2) Your government CHOOSES to participate in the Olympic bidding process and CHOOSES when and how to build infrastructure.

Can you go in the street and sell Mikrosoft Windows or Apple EyeMacs ?

For a website with so many startups you think people would be a little more aware of how copyright and trademarks work.

As a Canadian, living in Canada, a country with NO "fair use" provisions because our laws are derived from those of the United Kingdom, I am well aware of how copyright and trademarks work. The Olympics are a rarefied, global, multinational corporation that demand governments bend to their will with respect to their trademarks if they want the games. Governments do so because it brings in revenue and also allows them to undertake mega projects that would otherwise never see the light of day.

Check Microsoft vs MikeRoweSoft:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_vs._MikeRoweSoft

Also: For the 2010 FIFA World Cup the airline Kulula called itself the "Unofficial National Carrier of the You-Know-What". The ad was pulled when a complaint was lodged, though.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8576220.stm

Macrosoft - Where do you want to go tomorrow?

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