This raises some interesting intellectual property issues. When I read the headline, I was hoping that it wasn’t Spongebob’s creator/licensor/owner that caused the cemetery to go back on their prior approval. Instead, it was the cemetery itself that had a change of heart.
Technically, this gravestone could infringe both copyright and trademark rights. But, as the brand/copyright owner, this one would probably be best left alone. I can’t imagine that a black market of cartoon character grave markers will spring up if this “infringement” is left unchecked…
http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/22/us/spongebob-gravestone-controversy/index.html?hpt=hp_bn1
Florida IP Trends 