Was Hallmark Wrong to Steal 'That's Hot' From Paris Hilton?

by SodaHead Celebs Posted 2010/09/27 19:00:00

Related Topics: Paris Hilton, Reality Show, Lawsuit, YouTube

81 votes
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	Yes, it's Hilton's catchphrase	8 votes	10%
	No, what a stupid lawsuit	67 votes	83%
	Undecided	6 votes	7%

Celebrity heiress Paris Hilton finally has something to celebrate. A publicity rights lawsuit filed against Hallmark in 2007 was finally settled, and she's walking away with an undisclosed amount of money.

The suit revolved around a Hallmark greeting card that used Hilton's likeness and her catchphrase, "That's hot." It also appeared to have been poking fun at her reality show "The Simple Life."

Hilton originally requesting $500,000 for what she claimed was a violation of her publicity rights, but the final settlement will remain a secret.

Hallmark fought hard to defend the greeting card, invoking the First Amendment and claiming that its use of her phrase was transformative, meaning it "[transforms] a particular article into a different state or thing," according to U.S. patent law.

After nearly three years in court, the judge finally overruled Hallmark's defense and granted Hilton a settlement. The settlement may be the only good news Hilton has had in the past few weeks -- she was recently denied entry into Japan because of her guilty plea for cocaine possession.

Hallmark must be kicking itself right now. All that, and the card wasn't even that funny.

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Bulanova (Team Hargitay) 2010/09/28 04:52:14 (edited)

No, what a stupid lawsuit

+5
And just so everyone here has advanced warning, I'm also in ownership of the words "hamburger," "donkey," "fife," and "square." The following phrases belong to me as well: "chairman chain," "cookie nosebleed," "jacket quartet," "pincer supreme," and "doubleplus McFly." Anyone caught using these words or phrases as per outlined will be sought after and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. You have been warned. Have a nice day. Wait, I forgot that one. Yeah, add "have a nice day" to that list of owned phrases. Thanks.
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More polls by SodaHead Celebs

Soldier4Christ82 2010/09/27 23:53:38

Undecided

I personally think it's stupid, but it is her right because it is her intellectual property, especially since her picture is being used.

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giantapplepie 2010/09/27 23:46:37
Greetings Chap 2010/09/27 23:39:55 (edited)

No, what a stupid lawsuit

+2
it is stupid how you can trademark a phrase. Is that not a violation of free speech? Paris, you are so dumb, you are really really dumb, for real.

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scArgazer 2010/09/27 23:30:34 (edited)

No, what a stupid lawsuit

+1
Even if the card was poking fun at Paris, parody is permissible under copyright law. I honestly don't see anything to make a stink about. People need to laugh at themselves once in awhile (even if the card, admittedly, wasn't so funny.)

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Manster 2010/09/27 23:21:12

No, what a stupid lawsuit

+3
Tying up the judicial system for some BS lawsuit like this?! What an attention whore!

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MOMMA THOMAS 2010/09/27 21:31:22

No, what a stupid lawsuit

+1
SO, ....NO ONE HAS EVER SAID, "THAT'S HOT!" BEFORE PARIS HILTON?

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magic_is_might BN-0 2010/09/27 20:01:17

No, what a stupid lawsuit

+2
Paris Hilton:

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Nat™ 2010/09/27 19:49:35

No, what a stupid lawsuit

+3
Stole the words right out of my mouth, how effin' retarded.

I just think this is desperate of Hilton since paparazzi/media aren't on her dick as much anymore. She needs more publicity.

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