Impact doesn’t think Virus name is a problem
Don Day | September 10, 2009There’s been lots of speculation about KQLZ’s The Virus moniker and its similarity to the XM channel. (troublemaking tweeps on Twitter, commentors here, and a national radio news site)
We checked with Impact’s GM about the similar names… Darrell Calton says “we do not consider it a problem.”
Modern Rock “99.1 FM The Virus”.
SiriusXM Satellite Radio owns the trademark “The Virus”.
The Virus is on XM202 & Sirius197: Home of Opie & Anthony and Ron & Fez.
http://www.xmradio.com/onxm/channelpage.xmc?ch=202
Opie and Anthony
4:00 AM – 9:00 AM
Opie & Anthony have made The Virus their home every weekday morning, with additional encores around the clock. Catch the best of their outrageous radio with the Best of Opie & Anthony all weekend. Spread the Virus.
Ron and Fez
9:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Ron and Fez join the antics on The Virus. These two comics jump on the air right after Opie & Anthony and deliver non-stop laughter each weekday afternoon.
Modern Rock “99.1 The Virus”.
The Virus is owned by Sirius XM Satellite Radio.
The Virus is XM 202 and Sirius 197: Home of Opie & Anthony & Jim Norton and Ron & Fez.
http://www.xmradio.com/onxm/channelpage.xmc?ch=202
” Opie and Anthony
4:00 AM – 9:00 AM
Opie & Anthony have made The Virus their home every weekday morning, with additional encores around the clock. Catch the best of their outrageous radio with the Best of Opie & Anthony all weekend. Spread the Virus.
Ron and Fez
9:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Ron and Fez join the antics on The Virus. These two comics jump on the air right after Opie & Anthony and deliver non-stop laughter each weekday afternoon. “
http://twitter.com/AnthonyCumia
http://twitter.com/OpieRadio
http://twitter.com/jimnorton
http://www.xmradio.com/onxm/channelpage.xmc?ch=202
Maybe, Maybe not. IF it is a problem, The “Local” paper will have a ball with it in their paper.
Have not seen it happen in a while but in the past ASCAP, BMI and other organizations had a ball making sure that competing media got a press release whenever they were suing, complaining etc against a member of the radio community. It was always a great way of shaming them and making them look like fools,etc.
Who knows. Maybe the legal copyright owner of the Virus will let it slide…HOWEVER, its unlikely since to enforce the copyright they must make every effort to protect it…..knowingly letting someone use it without proper authorization or licensing can reduce their chances of keeping it. If they dont care who uses it…..WHY DID THEY COPYRIGHT IT IN THE FIRST PLACE….DUH.
This is not a copyright issue, it is a trademark issue. I don't understand how ASCAP or BMI would even be able to get involved. Copyright and these organizations are about the artistic value of the works played on the station. Unless they consider the name of the station and artistic statement, it is a simple issue of trademark.
Must be football season. The armchair quarterbacks are here. Trade Marking is about intellectual property and copyrights have always been about artistry. My second point is this. If Impact gets a court order to change it who cares? We have all seen thier ability over the last year to make ice cream out of curdled milk. You think they WANT to avoid publicity? It is all free! Thirdly, even though I personally think the format is a train wreck, why are all of you professed radio lovers lining up in a public forum to throw a fellow broadcaster under the bus for undermining satellite radio? Hello? Satellite radio? We have been fighting that since the conception and inception. Fact is it is subscription radio and this is free. Seems defendable to me if you have the pockets for it.
I once trademarked a radio program in the state of Utah. I did so, because I had built a big franchise, and didn't want management to take the name away from me. I was told that if I wanted it trademarked nationally, I would have to do so in all 50 states, or so said the Dept. of Commerce, some 16 years ago. Hence, unless Opie and Anthony have somehow accomplished such a feat, I doubt they can do a whole lot.
I don't know, are you guys sure KQLZ isn't a XM station? Because in the 5 PM hour(about 5:10 or so) they played the song “Addicted” by Saving Abel, and the useage of the word “Bullsh-” was broadcast over the air, and it was heard pretty clearly. I have heard several songs with the obscenities censored, but there have been a few examples, like this song and the song “What It's Like” by Everlast which I already mentioned, that have been broadcast uncensored.
I know this is an old-ish article, but KQLZ seems to be slowly introducing a new twist of their name in the past day or two I’ve noticed, calling it “The New V-99.1″. They have a slightly different logo on their online streamtheworld player and a few other webpages. It’s the same biohazard logo, just different words. Could they be gradually dropping “The Virus” from their name? Any idea?