LEGO built an eight-metre World Cup trophy in Rockefeller Plaza. Everyone applauded the experiential marketing. Almost nobody noticed the part that made it legal.
Three licences in one activation
The trophy design is a protected work and a registered sign belonging to the tournament organiser. Reproducing it at any scale requires permission. The tournament name and emblem, if referenced, are separate trademarks with their own licence terms. And the location itself carries usage rights that had to be cleared with the venue.
Any one of those missing turns a celebrated campaign into a legal problem in public.
What licence negotiations actually cover
Scope of use, territory, duration, whether images of the installation can be used in advertising afterwards, whether merchandise can be sold, who owns the photographs, and what happens if the brand is criticised while the activation is live.
The lesson at any scale
Experiential marketing that features someone else intellectual property is a contract exercise first and a creative exercise second. Get the licence before the build, and make sure it covers the content you plan to publish afterwards, which is where most agreements fall short.