28.02.2008

by Ian Watson

So here is the first issue of Matrix to appear in cyberspace, and immediately I must ask: why on earth did the BSFA not trademark the name 187 issues ago, long before a certain mega-budget movie came out? For then the Wachowski Brothers would have needed to pay the BSFA handsomely for use of the word! Actually, I jest. It isn’t a good idea for organisations to be able to trademark ordinary words, otherwise we’ll soon need to pay a royalty for speaking. Just imagine the problems for the Ambridge script writers. “How about a nice ® cup™ of Tea™, Clarey?”