Do Trademarks Reduce Search Costs in the Age of Information
Editors
Glynn S. Lunney Jr.
Files
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Description
This chapter questions the continuing relevance of the search cost theory of trademarks as markets shift online where algorithms shape and influence consumer purchasing decisions. Long the dominant approach to trademarks, the search cost theory posits that trademarks help consumers quickly and easily identify the precise product they desire in a crowded marketplace. As markets shift online, surveillance capitalism keeps careful track of what consumers look at, what they buy, and what they re-buy. To a computer, a trademark is just a particular collection of zeros and ones, and could be readily replaced by any other set of zeros and ones, uniquely associated with the consumer’s shopping and purchasing decisions. This chapter explores how the law should approach trademarks in this new digital age.
ISBN
9781786430465
Publication Date
12-5-2023
Book Title
Research Handbook on the Law and Economics of Trademark Law
First Page
92
Last Page
120
Publisher
Edward Elgar Publishing
Keywords
law and economics, trademark, AI, algorithms, search costs
Disciplines
Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law | Intellectual Property Law | Law
Recommended Citation
Farley, Christine Haight, "Do Trademarks Reduce Search Costs in the Age of Information" (2023). Contributions to Books. 343.
https://digitalcommons.wcl.american.edu/facsch_bk_contributions/343