Stop this corporate bullying

Thickets of rules are often used to keep small companies down, says Matthew Lynn. It's time corporate bullying was dealt with once and for all.

16-6-23-Haagen-1200

Hagen-Dazs: a pioneer in fakery

Next time you want to thank the person at the checkout who packed your bags, or someone who steps out of your way in the street, check with a lawyer first. Why? Because US bank Citigroup thinks it owns the word. Seriously. The bank is suing phone company AT&T, arguing that its use of the word "thanks" in its "AT&T thanks" loyalty scheme infringes Citi's own trademarked "Citi Thank You" scheme.

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Matthew Lynn

Matthew Lynn is a columnist for Bloomberg, and writes weekly commentary syndicated in papers such as the Daily Telegraph, Die Welt, the Sydney Morning Herald, the South China Morning Post and the Miami Herald. He is also an associate editor of Spectator Business, and a regular contributor to The Spectator. Before that, he worked for the business section of the Sunday Times for ten years. 

He has written books on finance and financial topics, including Bust: Greece, The Euro and The Sovereign Debt Crisis and The Long Depression: The Slump of 2008 to 2031. Matthew is also the author of the Death Force series of military thrillers and the founder of Lume Books, an independent publisher.