Kidrobot Vs. Taco Bell
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- max_prophet0
To be fair kid robot ripped the idea from Kubrick / medicom anyhow, who cares? There's a myriad of these companies now, and like everything 'young' and 'cool', it's only a matter of time before some bright marketing spark deems it ready for use on their campaign bus.
- ukit0
Let's put it this way, if you start a restaurant with the exact same colors, store layout and menu as Taco Bell, would Taco Bell just sit back and say, "that's pretty much what design is?" Hell no, they would slap you with a lawsuit.
- ukit0
fresnobob, I get what you are saying but it's pretty much a blatant copy in this case.
I am not all that into Kidrobot or all that stuff but anyone with a passing knowledge of it can see they meticulously copied everything, from the logo to the way the packaging is designed.
- dbloc0
This was obviously done on purpose or they wouldn't have completely copied the ad and character styles.
- mikotondria30
they're just 2inch tall plastic characters, I wouldnt even say they were of a similar genre of such things, I really don't see what the fuss is all about.
- fresnobob0
I don't really think they 'ripped off' anything other than the idea of a vinyl toy... which Kidrobot definitely did not come up with either. Someone took something from a sub-culture and put a Taco Bell spin on it. Cool, thats pretty much what design is, compiling ideas and changing them to suit your purpose. Dudes are just pissed because they realized that collecting of vinyl toys doesn't really make them special.
- well put. Advertising constantly pulls ideas from pop and sub-cultures. Banksy has some interesing quotes regarding this.baseline_shift
- "Advertising constantly steals ideas from pop and sub-cultures." - fixed it for you.monNom
- ukit0
This is the company that did it
I wonder how they approach a proposal like this - do they tell Taco Bell their idea is to blatantly rip off someone else's design? Or just go ahead and do it?
- sikma0
"It should be said that the kidrobot promo picture is a fake to show the similarities between the two products."
- d_rek0
jeez...
That's pretty blatant.
- baseline_shift0
- wowbaseline_shift
- yeah... except kidrobot ripped the tacobell ad to make his point...hans_glib
- version30
iwantbellhedztoys
- ukit0
Gidget the "Taco Bell chihuahua" (Febraury 7, 1994 - July 21, 2009) was a popular advertising figure and mascot, voiced by Carlos Alazraqui, and developed by TBWA and used by Taco Bell, a division of Louisville, Kentucky (USA)-based Yum! Brands.
The dog (sometimes depicted as a Mexican revolutionary wearing a beret or as a bandito wearing a sombrero) was made to speak through special effects. His advertising catch-phrase was "¡Yo quiero Taco Bell!" ("I want Taco Bell!" or "I love Taco Bell!").
The figure grew popular, so much so that toy figures of the dog were produced, and "Yo quiero (X)" became a recognized piece of pop culture. The dog also started two other catch phrases, "Drop the chalupa!" which briefly became an oft-quoted phrase on SportsCenter, and "Viva Gorditas!," meaning "Long live Gorditas!"
Some Latin Americans accused the dog of being a thinly veiled cultural stereotype. The company stopped showing the dog in advertisements in 2000. It was incorrectly rumored that Taco Bell ended the commercials because the dog died. Tom Kenny, a voice actor and friend of Alazraqui, said that Hispanic advocacy groups lobbying for the end of the campaign led to the cancellation of the Taco Bell dog.
In 2003 Taco Bell lost a lawsuit brought forth by two Michigan men who had pitched the concept of the Chihuahua to Taco Bell six years earlier. Taco Bell had turned them down but went forward with the campaign with TBWA. The men sued and in 2003 a jury awarded them $30.1 million in compensation plus nearly $12 million in additional interest three months later. Taco Bell in turn sued TBWA saying it should have been aware of the conflicts. In 2009 a three-judge federal appeals panel ruled against Taco Bell.
On July 21, 2009 Gidget was euthanized after suffering a massive stroke.
- There's a lesson in there somewhe... nope, guess not!ukit
- plusminusbox0
damn.
- graham0
mmm taco bell. wish they were in uk
- they would clean up.
Taco bell is awesome and awful in one chewy cheezy beany mouthful....agghhhhhmikotondria3
- they would clean up.
- Stugoo0
design your own bell end.. fuck, if iwasnt pissed up on whisky i would PS up a massive cock on eof these....