Copyright Versus Trademark: What’s the Difference?

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A few weeks ago, Taylor Swift (yes, her again) filed for trademark protection (again) for various catchphrases related to her latest album, 1989, such as “This Sick Beat” and “Swiftmas.” Even though musicians do this all the time for merchandising purposes, for some reason it’s particularly newsworthy when Swift does it. But what grabbed my attention this time wasn’t the inexplicable backlash she got (if Ed Sheeran had done it, would people have been so quick to judge?), but the factually inaccurate headlines that went along with it.

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In Brief: Taylor Swift Kicks Apple In The Nuggets, Is Proclaimed Savior Of Music By All [UPDATED]

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As everyone knows, Apple has a new Spotify/Tidal/Rdio/Pandora killer coming out this fall called Apple Music. In order to entice consumers, it will give everyone who signs up a free 3-month membership. But since Apple will receive no compensation in this time, neither will any of the artists featured on it. "That dog won't hunt," said Taylor Swift, probably.

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Protecting The Brand: Taylor Swift Seizes Control of Her Brand, Probably Won’t Suffer For It

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Protecting The Brand: Taylor Swift Seizes Control of Her Brand, Probably Won’t Suffer For It

The past few months have seen a lot of really intriguing legal activity from Swift’s people. First she took her music down from Spotify (by far the most popular streaming music service), meaning the only way to get her new album 1989 is to pay for it directly. A few weeks ago she filed for trademark protection of the phrase “this sick beat” because apparently she thinks there’s a lot of money to be made from it. And just last month she started issuing takedown notices to fans who were selling knock-off Swift merch on Etsy.

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