Polaroid Corp. v. Polarad Elect. Corp. is a key United States legal case from 1961 in

trademark infringement Trademark infringement is a violation of the exclusive rights attached to a trademark without the authorization of the trademark owner or any licensees (provided that such authorization was within the scope of the licence). Infringement may ...

law. It is also cited in personality rights particularly around celebrities. The decision argued that trademark infringement is measured by the multi-factor "likelihood of confusion"

test Test(s), testing, or TEST may refer to: * Test (assessment), an educational assessment intended to measure the respondents' knowledge or other abilities Arts and entertainment * ''Test'' (2013 film), an American film * ''Test'' (2014 film), ...

. That is, a new mark will infringe on an existing trademark if the new mark is so similar to the original that consumers are likely to confuse the two marks, and mistakenly purchase from the wrong company. The likelihood of confusion test turns on several factors, including: * Strength of the plaintiff's trademark * Degree of similarity between the two marks at issue * Similarity of the goods and services at issue * Evidence of actual confusion * Purchaser sophistication * Quality of the defendant's goods or services * Defendant's intent in adopting the mark This multi-factor test was articulated by Judge

Henry Friendly Henry Jacob Friendly (July 3, 1903 – March 11, 1986) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as a circuit judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit from 1959 until his death in 1986. Friendly was one of the most p ...

in ''Polaroid v. Polarad''. The criteria are often referred to as the "Polaroid factors."

References

{{Reflist 1961 in United States case law United States trademark case law Polaroid Corporation

See also

References