Re: Copyrighting/Patenting a Conlang

Steg Belsky wrote:

> On Apr 27, 2004, at 1:52 AM, Rik Roots wrote:
>
>> I expect a company which was producing merchandise containing phrases
>> in a
>> language which it had commissioned a conlanger to create for it would
>> take a
>> different view, and may choose to assert its "copyright" through court
>> action. How successful such an action would be I have no idea - I know
>> of no
>> precedents in such a scenario.
>
>
>
> That would be so cool!
> Instead of all those crazy fashion-obsessed teenagers and college
> students buying clothes that have random Japanese or Chinese phrases
> written on them, that they have no idea what they say,
I find it really funny that Americans like the looks of kanji, while the
Japanese have a thing for the roman alphabet, to the point where each
will wear clothes emblazoned with the other's language without having a
clue what thay're saying. A case of the orthographic grass being greener
on the other side, perhaps?

> they could be
> wearing one of our conlangs - that they *legitimately* would have no
> idea as to what the heck it says! :-P
Harpelan would be well suited to that, I would think.