Sticks and stones may break my bones

But consumer-generated words will never hurt me. Right? Not so fast.



Subway has filed a lawsuit against Quiznos and iFilm for a contest asking consumers to create their own ads depicting Quiznos sandwiches as being superior to Subway's. The New York Times published an article to examine the question underlying this lawsuit: "if Quiznos did not make the insulting submissions, should it be held liable for user-generated content created at its behest?"

This lawsuit makes it clear that while the practice of having consumers generate their own (ads, beverages, pants) has taken off, the rules have some catching up to do.

Opinion Polls & Market Research

User-generated soda

In February 2007 several advertisers embraced the power of user-generated content, soliciting entries from their consumers to create Super Bowl commercials. The efforts that turned out from Doritos and the NFL, among others, were some of the better ads during a lackluster game.

Mountain Dew recently launched a new campaign that takes the user-generated idea to the next level: user-generated products. At DewMocracy.com (gotta love campaign season), users can submit their input for the color, flavor, name, logo, and design of the next Mountain Dew soft drink. Not since the vote for the a new color of M&M's (blue in 1995 and purple in 2002) can I remember having a real voice in the type of product that a manufacturer is putting out.

I for one trust that those who tune in to DewMocracy will create a good product. Are you with me?