No Rock And Roll Fun

WALKMAN - NOW OF THE PEOPLE: More bad news for Sony, as an Austrian court have told them they don't have the right to stop another company from describing its personal hi-fi products as Walkmans. The court reckons that the term has stopped being a trademark and has become a generic, and as such is no longer usable only by Sony. We find ourselves in the odd position of feeling sorry for Sony - after all, the only reason Walkman has developed generic usage is because they grew the brand from nothing. Obviously, it's probably their own fault for pursuing the case in the first place - why won't international corporations ever stop and think before they go trying to crush small companies? - but even so. Strangely, today, a European court has told Philips they can't stop other people from making three-faced shavers.