為了讓大家可以更了解歐美正在發生的事,我們推出了一個「歐美趨勢」系列! 喜歡時事的聽友們千萬不能錯過:) 而且這次,我們不只錄了全英文的內容,也額外用中文分享給大家,希望不只練習聽力,也可以讓大家更理解內容在說什麼。 如果你喜歡這樣的改變,歡迎讓我們知道喔! ______ Hello everyone, and welcome back to Voices on the Road. I’m your host, Chloe. Welcome to our new series, which is all about the latest Western trends! But before we dive in, as always, you can find our full transcript in the show notes. If you want to take notes while listening, or if you want to learn more about Amie Road, feel free to click the link and check it out! Alright, let's get back to today's topic. Do you remember during the pandemic when everyone was stuck at home, spraying alcohol on everything? During that time, a huge trend started on TikTok. It was the "Hot Girl" trend. People started using phrases like "Hot Girl Walk" for fitness and "Hot Girl Read" for the #BookTok community. Originally, these phrases were created to break stereotypes. They were words of female empowerment, encouraging girls to embrace their confidence and self-value. But recently, these positive internet phrases turned into a massive legal battle. Today, we are going to talk about the TikTok Trademark War, and learn the very important difference between a Trademark and a Copyright. Let's talk about what happened. A popular creator named Allie Rose quietly registered the phrase "Hot Girl Read" as her exclusive trademark. She started selling merchandise like bags and shirts. When people found out, the internet was furious. Why? Because "Hot Girl Read" was a common phrase that belonged to the public. By registering it, Allie Rose directly hurt countless small, independent creators who were also selling book-related items. Allie defended herself by saying, "I just don't want people to copy my original designs." But legal experts and the community quickly pointed out her mistake. If she wanted to protect a design, she should have applied for a Copyright, not a Trademark. So, what is the difference? A Copyright protects your expression. It protects original creative works like articles, paintings, books, and music. The goal is to reward the original creator. A Trademark, on the other hand, protects business identification. Think of a brand name, a logo, or product packaging. The goal of a trademark is to protect fair competition and stop consumers from getting confused. Here is the most important part: once you own a trademark, the law actually forces you to protect it. If you don't warn or sue people who use your trademark, the court will think you don't care about it, and you will lose your rights! Because Allie Rose used a trademark, she accidentally turned a "copyright victim mindset" into "trademark business bullying." Small creators couldn't make money from their own work anymore because they were afraid of being sued. The backlash against Allie was huge. People even dug up her past and found that she used to sell unauthorized merchandise herself! People were angry about her double standard. Eventually, Allie gave up the trademark and promised to donate her profits to charity. But the trust in the community is very hard to rebuild. And she is not the only one! Another creator, Mia Lind, who started the famous "Hot Girl Walk" (walking 4 miles a day while only thinking positive thoughts), also applied for a trademark. Soon, small creators who just organized walking events or created "Hot Girl Walk" Spotify playlists started receiving legal warnings. The internet is a shared space. When someone tries to put a price tag on a shared culture, things get very complicated! Now, let’s move to our Vocabulary Corner. Here are five key words from today's episode that are great for discussing news and social issues. 1. Trademark This is a noun. It is a name, symbol, or design that a company uses on its products and that cannot legally be used by anyone else. Example: "Nike's famous checkmark symbol is a registered trademark." 2. Copyright This is a noun. It is the legal right to control the production and selling of a book, play, film, photograph, or piece of music. Example: "You cannot use this song in your YouTube video because of copyright laws." 3. Empowerment This is a noun. It means the process of gaining freedom and power to do what you want or to control what happens to you. Example: "The movement focuses on female empowerment and building self-confidence." 4. Backlash This is a strong, negative public reaction against something that has happened. Example: "The company faced a huge backlash after they increased their prices." 5. Double standard This is a noun phrase. It means a rule or principle that is applied unfairly to different people or groups. Example: "People were angry at her double standard because she copied others in the past." Thank you for listening to Voices on The Road. If you want to learn more about Amie Road, we are an English learning platform focusing not only on English improvement but also achieving your dream life through English learning. If you want to know more, please follow us on Instagram: amieroad_official. I’ll see you in the next one, stay tuned! ________ ▫️追蹤我們的IG: https://www.instagram.com/amieroad_official/ ▫️官網看更多資訊:https://amieroad.com/ ▫️加入官方Line了解課程:https://lin.ee/5VRMEiq ▫️成為Amie Road VIP會員:https://reurl.cc/OR9dN9 ▫️合作/投稿:contact@amieroad.com -- Hosting provided by SoundOn