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Let's be clear here. The issues lie with FMIC's and Gibson's legal staffs. They have been in the mode of enforcing the "gentlemen's agreement" and trying to legally protect (trademark) their respective body styles for so many years now, that they still haven't fully accepted the fact that the recent court decisions have consistently and all-but-completely rejected any notion that their respective companies "own" these body styles, and they can protect them against production by any other competing manufacturer.
In part, they continue to think that they can still enforce "ownership" by bullying other companies (and each other) with the simple threat of legal action. Even though they now must know they have no hope of winning in the courts, the threatened costs of legal action alone is still a large deterrent to most other guitar manufacturers. So they know that few folks have the legal and financial capability to fight the threats, even though the other manufacturers would win! By the time all of the legal bills were done, the winner might be bankrupt.
However, the FMIC and Gibson legal staff seem to be failing to consider how the recent court decisions now present a risk to their companies' behavoirs. i.e., By continuing to try to enforce protection of the body styles from other manufacturers - in part through tacit cooperation with Gibson - they may be engaging in illegal collusion to manipulate the markets against competition.
The guys at J/C and in the custom shop? They would love to build these body styles again. But their hands are tied by the corporate legal staffs.
Then again, I'm just a hack guitarist, so WTF do I know?
In part, they continue to think that they can still enforce "ownership" by bullying other companies (and each other) with the simple threat of legal action. Even though they now must know they have no hope of winning in the courts, the threatened costs of legal action alone is still a large deterrent to most other guitar manufacturers. So they know that few folks have the legal and financial capability to fight the threats, even though the other manufacturers would win! By the time all of the legal bills were done, the winner might be bankrupt.
However, the FMIC and Gibson legal staff seem to be failing to consider how the recent court decisions now present a risk to their companies' behavoirs. i.e., By continuing to try to enforce protection of the body styles from other manufacturers - in part through tacit cooperation with Gibson - they may be engaging in illegal collusion to manipulate the markets against competition.
The guys at J/C and in the custom shop? They would love to build these body styles again. But their hands are tied by the corporate legal staffs.
Then again, I'm just a hack guitarist, so WTF do I know?
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