KXAS reporter Brett Johnson found the perfect man-on-the-street interview for his story about the aggressive position taken by Sprinkles Cupcakes to protect their high- dollar cupcake empire: "You wouldn't really think that something so little and so minor on top of a cupcake would be part of a trademark," the unidentified patron said, contemplating the circle-within-a-circle icing design on top of each Sprinkles cupcake.

Indeed. This summer alone, Sprinkles has warned one rival to discontinue using a similar circle motif in its packaging. Most recently, it threatened a cupcake peddler called "Sprinkled Pink Cupcake Couture" and ordered that the business change its name. As Munck Carter intellectual property attorney Dyan House put it, protecting Sprinkles' distinctive niche is a fight worth having and goes to the core of trademark law, whether you're talking about cupcakes or technological innovation.