Rollerblade
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the company and trademark Rollerblade. For the generic skates, see inline skates.
Rollerblade is a registered trademark owned by Nordica, part of the Tecnica Group of Trevignano, Treviso, Italy.[1] Scott and Brennan Olson sold their Minneapolis company and it became Rollerblade, Inc.[2] which has changed hands over time between Nordica, Benetton Group and Tecnica.[3] The Rollerblade trademark has been in use since March of 1983. While the company does not want the meaning of their trademark to be diluted, the term "rollerblade" is frequently used in casual conversations as a generic word for any inline skate, regardless of brand. This misuse has also appeared on "official" items such as signs, buildings, and sidewalks.
[edit] See also
- A list of former and current trademarks which are often used generically
- Trademark dilution
- Roller skate
- Inline skates
[edit] Notes
- ^ U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (Filed July 15, 1984). Trademark Applications and Registrations Retrieval. Retrieved on February 25, 2007.
- ^ Lemelson-MIT (August 1997). Inventor of the Week Archive: Scott & Brennan Olson (spelling corrected per rowbike.com). MIT School of Engineering. Retrieved on February 25, 2007.
- ^ Skate Log (February 5, 2003). Benetton Confirms Selling Rollerblade. Retrieved on February 25, 2007. and DSN Retailing Today via Find Articles (March 24, 2003). Rollerblade brand skates over to Tecnica. Retrieved on February 25, 2007.
