digg

Join DiggAbout

Discover the best of the web!
Learn more about Digg by taking the tour.

See the original image at arstechnica.com

Fark.com trying to get trademark on

arstechnica.com — Fark.com has filed for a trademark application covering the phrase "Not safe for work." Given NSFW's wide usage, enforcement could prove to be very difficult if the mark is even granted.

Bury
show profanity settings
expand all
  • rmw132, on 12/10/2007, -4/+52NSFW
    • DarkSamus, on 12/10/2007, -1/+6.com
      • ReedSolomon, on 12/12/2007, -0/+0Obligatory reference to bannination.com, where all the cool (arguably) farkers went.
    • SonicRush, on 12/10/2007, -8/+1Yeah that really doesn't apply here....
    • SuperWinner, on 12/10/2007, -1/+35If they do get this trademark, we'll all stop using NSFW and start using DLYCMSYLATI
      (don't let your cubicle mate see you looking at these images)
      • Drahkar, on 12/10/2007, -0/+5It shouldn't pass through. If i remember correctly you can;'t trademark or copyright anything that is considered popular sayings as well as other things like that.
        • rpgmaker, on 12/10/2007, -0/+15Dude, you are talking about the US copyright system, the logic doesn't apply there.
          • DarkSamus, on 12/10/2007, -0/+2i wish the stds i caught in vegas stayed in vegas
        • MWeather, on 12/10/2007, -0/+4Drew Curtis has a pretty good lawyer, though. He got off scot-free after charging for access to his site and secretly preventing anyone else from seeing your posts.( i.e. a shadow ban).
          • VanillaStarfish, on 12/10/2007, -1/+0I was probably shadow banned. I was banned from the admins all the freakin time including a whole month once for saying one of the admins had a ***** name.
      • ECas123, on 12/10/2007, -0/+14Or IYWCBMSYLATEAAKK (If your wife, coworker, boss, mom see you looking at this, expect an ass kicking. kthxby)
    • Tilon, on 12/10/2007, -0/+29Drew Curtis presents Drew Curtis' NSFW™ Fark™.com (Drew Curtis Presents)
      • threemagic, on 12/10/2007, -1/+11Drew Curtis shows how big of an ***** he truly is.

        just reading between the lines.
    • sq2shooter, on 12/10/2007, -2/+10Drew [TotalFark] Quote 2007-12-10 09:06:04 AM
      Anyone who thinks we're remotely serious about this obviously has never read Fark

      Pwnage FTW
      • farksucksmasack, on 12/10/2007, -0/+6I see, the old "I was just kidding you guys! HAHAHA" defense.

        That's almost as believable as the "My Girlfriend/Wife/Brother/Sister was using my account when they posted that!"
    • maddhopps, on 12/10/2007, -0/+1The term is generic now. So even if they ever once had protection for it as an unregistered trademark, people nowadays do not associate "NSFW" with Fark when they see it. I can't believe Fark is even trying. Total waste of money and effort. (And as the description says, it wouldn't be worth the trouble of enforcing.)
    • motionblur, on 12/11/2007, -0/+1Drew responds: http://forums.fark.com/cgi/fark/comments.pl?IDLink ...
  • sajnikanth, on 12/10/2007, -1/+92WTF?™
    • nicko68, on 12/10/2007, -0/+1Which apparently now stands for "Worse Than Failure" (or did the last time I went there)
    • Gonz037, on 12/10/2007, -0/+1THIS
  • mu0p, on 12/10/2007, -7/+99fark is such a steaming pile of fail for doing this.
    • tektalk, on 12/10/2007, -4/+41FAIL™
      • KirbyMeister, on 12/10/2007, -0/+13You're infringing on my trademark for the word "Trademark". Pay up.
  • gnomey, on 12/10/2007, -21/+1LOL at mu0p - True.
  • jeffsback2223, on 12/10/2007, -2/+44Give it up Fark, Its under public domain now.
  • 1town, on 12/10/2007, -3/+3Is LOL taken?

    W00t... ah, to be young again
    • drakenlot, on 12/10/2007, -2/+1LOL isn't.

      But I applied to have any form of l33t-speak trademarked.
  • samsam123, on 12/10/2007, -3/+4New South Farkin Wales
  • sevenslashfour, on 12/10/2007, -0/+48Words cannot describe how bad of an idea this is.
  • 2050, on 12/10/2007, -1/+6I wish the Oxford Dictionary guys declare NSFW as a pronoun before the trademark is granted.
    • Takteek, on 12/10/2007, -1/+7Yeah cause NSFW and I need to go do some stuff.
      • drakenlot, on 12/10/2007, -0/+3Yeah, I don't think NSFW is considered a pronoun.

        Wouldn't it be closer to an adjective?
        • threemagic, on 12/10/2007, -0/+4Isn't it just an acronym?
        • vornan19, on 12/10/2007, -0/+6Not-adverb
          Safe-adjective
          For-preposition
          Work-noun!
          So it's a adverjective preponoun!
        • billyfalconer, on 12/10/2007, -0/+0It's an abbreviation, and it can function as whatever part of speech you want it to.
  • ani625, on 12/10/2007, -2/+18I sense much FAIL in this sector
  • BoneheadFarker, on 12/10/2007, -9/+32***** Fark...***** sellouts...
    • NinjaBoy, on 12/10/2007, -12/+5Being a total farker I just assume this is some sort of joke.
      • funny3, on 12/10/2007, -3/+11Ask Drew how much he charges to put a link on the main page.
        Oh... wait, you probably thought that all of those links are just placed on the main page because he finds them interesting?
        • mhender, on 12/10/2007, -2/+2He doesn't put all the links up there.
          Way to go, asshat.
      • threemagic, on 12/10/2007, -1/+8Stop giving that ass Drew your money...
        • pyry, on 12/11/2007, -0/+1I think he means being a complete farker, not a TotalFarker. :P
    • Falldog, on 12/10/2007, -0/+7This in no way relates to what selling out really means.
      • BoneheadFarker, on 12/10/2007, -4/+4It was more a statement of fact rather then anything to do with the NSFW thing. Although the NSFW thing adds to the douchebaggery that exists at the Fark headquarters.
  • BuzFortuna, on 12/10/2007, -2/+7Another duplicate article making it to the front page for the second time? Surprise!
    • liljay2k, on 12/10/2007, -1/+4i didnt see it the first time, i'm glad its a duplicate.
  • SquireToad, on 12/10/2007, -5/+14[NSFW] Bite me, Fark [/NSFW]

    Morons.
  • Bitties, on 12/10/2007, -4/+7Farking idiots.
  • Christbait, on 12/10/2007, -3/+5FAIL. So this means we wouldn't be allowed to use it so freely anymore? Amazing how a site that simply hosts silly pictures thinks of itself as some sort of corporation, who runs it, 18 year old kids? Money, money, money.
    • themarq, on 12/10/2007, -0/+10Oh man, you have no idea how close to the mark you hit that one. Drew Curtis may not be 18yrs old, but he certainly behaves that way.

      But hey, if you want to give him an Xmas present you can access his Amazon wishlist here: http://www.fark.com/2007/wishlist.shtml Yeah, seriously, an amazon wishlist, just like a webcam whore would have.... classy.
  • creep303, on 12/10/2007, -2/+14If this happens, I will gladly go back to using "NWS" before I ever learned NSFW existed. I will drop it so fast, they'll have to take it on Maury to see if I am it's father or not.
    • terminal157, on 12/10/2007, -0/+8Or you could just keep using NSFW. It really won't make a difference.
    • drakenlot, on 12/10/2007, -0/+2Or use TNSFW, that's not safe for work.

      It wouldn't cover if you add something to it, it's considered a new word/acronym.
  • liljay2k, on 12/10/2007, -5/+3this particular website is not safe for work.
    TPWINSFW
  • noahhoward, on 12/10/2007, -2/+6I want a patent on "If this ***** gets through the patent office is a bunch of retarded chimps" or ITSGTTPOBRC™
    • ninsei, on 12/10/2007, -0/+4I believe that's already patented ... by the chimps that work in the patent office :)
    • MWeather, on 12/10/2007, -0/+1I agree. If they allow a patent on a word, they're idiots.
      • drakenlot, on 12/10/2007, -0/+1Well, they've allowed phrases through, so that's probably true. or is it that they're just that lazy?
  • Rabbethan, on 12/10/2007, -1/+8Wow, that's quite a dickish thing to do.
    • threemagic, on 12/10/2007, -2/+2Yah, Drew and his mods are like that.
      • MacEnvy, on 12/10/2007, -2/+1edit: same comment was already made below, bury this
  • craineum, on 12/10/2007, -1/+8***** You Frank, oh wait, I mean, Fark
  • WorkingDead, on 12/10/2007, -1/+7"You'll get over it"
  • halobender, on 12/10/2007, -1/+13This is just strange. Fark is not a huge company. Generally a fun site to check out. Why are they being dumb asses? They can't gain much with a NSFW patent.
    • Wartyboskfapped, on 12/10/2007, -3/+4He's doing it to make a point.
      • strictnein, on 12/10/2007, -0/+4How about I kick you in the balls to show you that it hurts?
    • FishHammer, on 12/10/2007, -1/+1yeah the point that digg is slowly replacing fark and its a last act of a desparate man for attention
  • themarq, on 12/10/2007, -0/+15It's Not News,
    it's making money off the ideas of our users.com
  • Darrelc, on 12/10/2007, -1/+19Doesn't matter. we'll just change it to mean "Not Suitable For Work".
  • Brian.Honaker, on 12/10/2007, -0/+5Yeah while we're all at it, I think I'm going to trademark the term "Farkin" in it's synonym for *****. That should piss them right off.
  • mstump, on 12/10/2007, -1/+7I used to live and die by fark.com. Now, I keep forgetting about that site altogether. They should have kept a smaller set of tags. Once they started adding new ones every goddamned week, they dissolved their brand, and lost this farker.
    • mrgreenjeans9, on 12/10/2007, -0/+1i'm with you holmes
      • omgdspmpg, on 12/11/2007, -0/+1SA is better anyway
        • mstump, on 12/12/2007, -0/+1Only the Jeff K bit is worth reading, if you ask me, which granted, you didn't, but that's ok, I like commas.
  • mechman, on 12/10/2007, -0/+4One look at Google Trends will show you how difficult a copyright like this would be to enforce:

    http://www.google.com/trends?q=NSFW
  • magicbullets, on 12/10/2007, -3/+0Alrighty, so I'm applying for 'DREW'. It stands for Insert Witty Acronym Here.

    Gotta love Fark.
    • threemagic, on 12/10/2007, -0/+2D.umb R.edheaded E.gotistical W.ienie.. hmm no.. W.orm is more fitting.
  • inertic, on 12/10/2007, -3/+11Drew Curtis - One of the most hypocritical douchebags on the internet.
  • gamerscalling, on 12/10/2007, -0/+8NSFO, Not Safe For Office
    NSFP, Not Safe For Public
    NSFJ, Not Safe For Job
    I hereby claim these as public domain if so not claimed before this point. :p
    • DarkSamus, on 12/10/2007, -0/+1what about SFWN™, safe for work, NOT!!
  • drakenlot, on 12/10/2007, -0/+6You know? Even if it goes through, how would they get people to pay royalties for using it?
    Last time I checked, the internet was anonymous unless you purposefully make it not. I rarely use my real information, so ***** YOU FARK, you farking monkey farkers!

    To prove this point:
    You're fired!
    That's hot.
    etc.
    (I'd love to see Trump and Hilton get me for that)
    • terminal157, on 12/10/2007, -2/+3Ever heard of an IP address? You're not as anonymous as you think you are. But even so, no one is going to get in trouble for using NSFW, ever. I promise.
      • drakenlot, on 12/10/2007, -1/+3Ooh, so sue my college.
        Besides, ever heard of proxies? I use them at home quite often to access sites that are blocked outside of USA.
  • Wartyboskfapped, on 12/10/2007, -1/+18I happen to know Drew Curtis is a douchenozzle of immense proportions.
    • arbulus, on 12/10/2007, -0/+1Really? You've met him?
    • bdesign, on 12/10/2007, -2/+0I've met Drew a couple times and I happen to know you're wrong. He's nothing but a sincerely nice guy.
  • fani, on 12/10/2007, -1/+8NSFW=Not suitable for work

    Fark - you lost.
  • CheeseburgerBro, on 12/10/2007, -1/+3Drew is flirting with the dark side. Now it will forever dominate his destiny, yes yes.
  • yunus, on 12/10/2007, -1/+2Company trademarking commonly used phrase. Sounds like a Fark worthy article, just have to figure out to link it to Florida and Duke Sucks.
  • DrSnugglebunny, on 12/10/2007, -1/+7DCCNSFW (Drew Curtis Can Now Start Fellating Wildebeest)
    • drakenlot, on 12/10/2007, -0/+3Funniest change of NSFW I've ever seen.
  • reckage, on 12/10/2007, -2/+9As little as six months ago, I was a die hard farker who used Digg maybe once a week. Over the past 3 or 4 months I have reversed that position completely. Digg is now my "go to" website for being entertained and informed and Fark is one of those things that I go to maybe once a week. This sucks too, I've met Drew before when he did a guest lecture on entrepreneurship in one of my business classes. He seemed like a stand up guy, but this really is a petty move that can't have any real benefit besides saying "nyah nyah this word is ours". Good luck enforcing it in the off chance that you actually get the TM.
    • madk, on 12/10/2007, -0/+1Same. My heart will always be with Fark...but I rarely visit anymore.
    • BoneheadFarker, on 12/10/2007, -0/+46 months?? Try about since May, when the redesign happened and they started getting ban-happy. Before that it was starting to go downhill, but it was still a fun site. That changed when they finally sold out to their advertisers. Now threads are heavily modded, and links are for sale. ***** Drew, ***** Fark.
    • drakenlot, on 12/10/2007, -1/+2I've gone to FARK less times than I can count on one hand.

      It's a black hole of intelligence.
    • threemagic, on 12/10/2007, -0/+2I'm over a year now. Once was a total farker and I knew most of the mods and main posters. If you spend your money there, you are as big of an idiot as I was. Drew is an absolute ass as are his mods. I couldn't stand the way they bullied everyone except thier few friends. One mod once said to me, "Look, I'm a website moderator.. what are you?"

      He actually thought being a website moderator was something.. he was bigger than god. That was enough.. I found digg! An outside of the obvious front page bias towards those with millions of friends.. it's a very cool place with intelligent people.
  • Phatfiddler, on 12/10/2007, -0/+3Too bad there is already a www.NSFW.com
  • delau, on 12/10/2007, -1/+6I heard www.zombo.com already has the trademark.
  • SebK666, on 12/10/2007, -1/+3*sigh* Asshats...
  • angrycat, on 12/10/2007, -0/+4Dugg for lolcat.
  • madk, on 12/10/2007, -1/+7I really don't understand this move. I love Fark. They are definitely the grandfather of all of our internet humor, lingo and what-not. But a trademark on NSFW? Come on now...that goes against everything us internet users are for. That being porn and copyrights.
    • terminal157, on 12/10/2007, -0/+4And violating the copyrights of porn, in particular.
    • DatVillain83, on 12/10/2007, -1/+1digg! im sure Fark predates creative commons licenses, im not very sure though, but i haven't visited fark in a loooong time. it was my #1 till about 1999.
      • bdesign, on 12/10/2007, -0/+0Really? Til' 1999 it was your number 1? It STARTED in 1999, so I'm not sure how it was your #1 before that.
      • Coffeedemon, on 12/10/2007, -0/+1The year it launched? Didn't stick around long.
    • drakenlot, on 12/10/2007, -3/+1Forgot about 4chan? I always thought 4chan came before just about every other site of it's kind.
  • chris9902, on 12/10/2007, -3/+5Assholes.
  • TTURabble, on 12/10/2007, -1/+1NSFW is NWS! (Not Work Safe)
  • 5xSTUN, on 12/10/2007, -0/+3I think they can have it as a trademark if it's going to be in reference to something really specific that only they are doing. They won't get it if the USPTO figures out that they're just going to use it to jack people for typing "NSFW" as a warning to other users.

    Still, it's not like there aren't heinous trademarks out there. The word "superhero" comes to mind, as a word that was in common usage in reference to a specific type of character long, LONG before Marvel & DC managed to trademark it.
  • Dstin, on 12/10/2007, -0/+1I think the term has been widely known to the internet outside of refference on fark for more than a year...so not tardemark for them

    Guess it sucks to be ***** retarded...
  • 6502programmer, on 12/10/2007, -1/+3I claim UFIA in the name of Digg. Take that, Drew!
  • ianarcher, on 12/10/2007, -0/+1I think "NS4W" is the more accurate acronymization, or "!S4W" for the CS types.
    • dontburythis, on 12/10/2007, -0/+1I own NS4W.ORG and NotSafe4Work.com and Drew recently stopped approving our links . Now I know why.
  • ArcticCelt, on 12/10/2007, -1/+2To be fair, the first time I saw the use of "NSFW" regularly it was on Fark more than 5-6 years ago. But the term only got popular when other web sites, who become bigger than Fark (Digg, Reddit, Youtube...), helped to make it popular.

    Also I think it was an initiative of the users not of Drew Curtis. (So maybe some user may sue Drew then?)

    A trademark (unlike a copyright) is only valid if you protect it. They never protected it and it's not even them alone who made it popular. I am almost certain this will fail.
  • marksweb, on 12/10/2007, -1/+1dugg for the cat picture :D

    pwnage.
  • Fetching more discussions...
    Show 51 - 79 of 79 discussions
  •  

    Login or register to add a comment

    Create a new account or login to join in the conversation on Digg. You'll also be able to Digg stories to help promote things you like.


© Digg Inc. 2008 — Content posted by Digg users is dedicated to the public domain.
DIGG, DIGG IT, DUGG, DIGG THIS, Digg graphics, logos, designs, page headers, button icons, scripts, and other service names are the trademarks of Digg Inc.