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I don't think I'd be confused about the elf product being the benefit one, the packaging is much simpler, the only thing the color story does is tell me "yes I am a dupe of benefit roller lash"

The issue is that if Tatcha won , there would be a very dangerous pretender when it comes to trade dress and many brands use generic packaging or Smaller brands get it off of Aliexpress . Theree would suits all over the place

ELF’s ripoffs of other, higher quality brands, is lazy and a turn off to me. I am not interested in buying from a brand that has no respect for the creative process other companies go through to design and market a product.

I’m still salty that Benefit discontinued the brown Rollerlash. Elf released lash n roll in brown. So I get the 2nd best brown mascara for $6; I’m okay with that. They want my money then give me back my brown Roller Lash! Benefit can sit down and close their collective pie holes.

Matcha and too faced are also considered “high end “

People are using Klarna to buy groceries now a days …I don’t care if people buy a cheaper version of a product. I actually have the ELF mascara and I had no idea it was a dupe. Im not paying 20-30 bucks for a mascara. Im just not. Makeup its really that revolutionary anymore . Mascara is mascara . Save your money

To the people in the comments asking how you can buy generic tylenol and advil, etc., that's a different process entirely. When new drugs are made the company owns the patent. But eventually the patent expires (usually about 20 years after the drug is originally created), which allows other companies to make generics.

Hi Jen! Thank you for putting all the personal info about your recording setup in your information. I was amazed at how your camera maintains focus on you while you're an expressive and animated speaker (which is how I describe myself and it's nicer than what my brother calls it "Weeble talker" and claiming I made him seasick during Zoom calls. Family huh?) I will look into these miracle fixtures and see if he notices. You're a star! On topic; I wonder how McoBeauty reacted to this lawsuit considering how many brands and products they've copied - well it looks like they DGAF. I bet if companies offered the option of generic packaging of their winning formulas at discounted prices, people would buy them instead of the dupes. Even if the generic packaging is a few dollars more than the dupe. Well, I know I would because packaging means absolutely nothing to me. I understand Manny MUA's dilemma was different as it was more like art. It reminded me of the elevator scene in Working girl. Sorry for the TLDR; I love this topic, thank you for the video.

Also, nobody is confusing a dupe for the higher end product. Benefit must be pretty highly of themselves if they think people are really gonna get those confused

What’s the saying about imitating is the sincerest form of flattery?

Duping isn’t illegal - this is how capitalism works . Protect what you have created

I hope Benefit don't win because the lash roll is my favourite mascara 🙈 I refuse to buy high end mascaras when drug store mascaras are so effective! I do think Elf could be more original with their packaging though

alright so about ppl being okay with elf but not makeup rev dupe-ing, even when they both dupe big brands... thing is, elf didnt have that many good products at the beginning too - think before covid. i think that, apart from their high coverage matte concealer (which was also 50/50 bc some ppl loved it and other hated it), elf started being loved by the makeup public towards the end of 2020 really, iirc. makeup rev has some really good hidden gems too, but i think they are disliked bc they never had a sudden rebrand like elf did and stayed the "low quality dupe brand" and HEAVILY advertised their bad dupes more than their good, original products. people also blasted on them when they copied high end brands, after all. theres also the fact that some european brands tend to dupe american brands (even indie ones) because they want to give to the european market what the american one has. this is slowly dying because more european retailers are picking up american brands. but yeah, my undiagnosed neurodivergency makes me go CRAZYYYY every time i see people being hypocritical about these brands duping. you either care about the morality of copying other people’s work or you don't, full stop. there is room for grey areas (bc dupe-ing an indie brand will never be okay) but people getting on a soap box and then turning their back once a brand they like does it makes me grind my gears.

I kinda wonder why Lunar Beauty didn't provide Revolution with the specs on the design, they were able to show it in a video, but didn't send it when asked? Was that a smart way to get support and gain sales at Revolutions expense? I totally congratulate Lunar Beauty if that was the case.

I have tried the Benefit lash n roll mascara. It is amazing. It does what it say the product does. The only way I could try it was in the mini mascara quad that was available at Sephera. I personally don't want to spend $45 dollars Canadian on a tube of mascara. I don't like any of the elf mascaras. I think the elf mascaras are kind of a joke. Essence is Queen in the drugstore because her product works! Just saying. Don't clock me. Lol😅

it's.. a black tube with a pink lid. Is it really that big of a deal?

People tend to forget this industry, as big as it is…it’s pretty small. Very few things now are groundbreaking… there’s only so many factories that produce all this stuff and only so many labs in the world.i really don’t think there’s anything wrong with both elf and benefit both having black and pink mascara bottles lol. And tbh, I totally forgot that mascara existed…

Idk for me personally, the textured mascara lid is something I'd more associate with Benefit. Just pink & black packaging is pretty basic. The name of it is kinda sus aside from lash because you'd expect that in almost every mascara name or description. The whole thing is just ridiculous to me personally because the Benefit customer that is spending about $30 on a mascara just isn't going to see that $6 mascara & think they're the same thing. It's a completely different customer base imo as the makeup industry tends to be very image conscious. If they're spending $30 on a mascara for a more lux experience, an Elf product just isn't going to provide that to them. Elf products can be amazing but nobody is buying Elf for the same reasons they are buying Benefit. These products aren't sold under a banner/area marked Mascara. They are sold under banners/areas marked Benefit or Elf. There is very little opportunity for a customer to ever get "confused".

I’m pretty sure e.l.f. has had this situation once before. It was around 2018 when they had a primer called Foundation Glue. It was clear, silicone-free, and very sticky. When I went looking to repurchase, it seemed to have completely disappeared from the internet. What I did find was a near-identical primer from Dermablend. I didn’t have the ingredient list of the e.l.f. product anymore, but the Dermablend product had an ingredient list that was highly similar to what I remember. The odds of some copyright infringement seem pretty high to me

The outer packaging looks nothing alike I would never mistake 1 for the other and I wear elf this is 1 item on my wishlist but I haven't tried yet just the big mood and lash extender the thrive dupe haha ❤😊 I don't care if elf is duping em thanks for the price break see ya next check out!

What a lovely blouse ! So flattering on you Jen

If I'm buying elf, I wasn't going to buy the og anyway. Am I ever going to buy the tatcha primer? No, but i bought the elf. Is the og better? Yes. But i dont wanna shell money for something risky for my style. But then, did I buy CT filter? Yep. I am willing to pay money for the better product if it's up my alley. Finally, roller lash is SO away from my alley that I won't even buy the dupe. So three scenarios.. in all 3 of them, the main brand loses nothing. On the other hand, duping indie brands ala revolution is scummy. Indie brands are smaller, dont have the same resources or market reach and CANT afford to make their product cheaper, they only have their love and care to offer.

I like Benefit but they need to get over themselves 🙄

When did dupes go from formulas being super close to same packaging but no difference in formula? My question is, is it really a dupe if the only similarity is the packaging? Bc last i checked when you want a dupe you want it for the formula not packaging.. its not a dupe if the brand is copying packaging and thats all

So... Are both mascaras the same? From my vantage point, no, they are not. Clearly, you can see that the E.L.F. mascara is trying to benefit from the aesthetic of the competition. Basically riding off of the hype (success) of the other brands mascara. That's what they ARE guilty of.

I know brands will sue if other brands copy their vibes, because if they don’t protect their trademark/IPs EVERY time then they lose the right to defend them down the road. That’s one reason I could see benefit suing. That being said honestly who even buys benefit anymore. I think they’re heavily dependent on repeat sales of things like mascara and brow products, so if people move on to a dupe of one of their core products I could see why they would wanna start calling their lawyers

Ironically - both products are terrible! The OG is a terrible product and the dupe is just as bad!

I love these deep dives into makeup & the legalities of copyright infringement. Also your multi-episodic series into Morphe/Jacklyn Hill debacle was truly inspired! Manny MUA had a good, solid case. Benefit- eh, sort of, but not quite. Tache & Too Faced- not as similar, but I can see the confusion. Truth be told; Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

I feel like benefit has their customer base and that never really changes. I told my mom about dupes but she sticks with what she knows and that's just how benefit customers are

I don’t think they are similar at all. Honestly, these are two very different brands when it comes to price, I can’t walk in a Walmart and get Benefit cosmetics but I can get ELF. They are in different sections at places like Ulta. If someone mistakes them it’s not on the brand

Wait- with Grace and respect- did I just sit through nearly 3 minutes of a buildup that turned out to be not an indie brand but benefit cosmetics vs elf cosmetics? The scenario you describe in the beginning is, respectfully, nothing like the companies cited.

The mascara packaging is not similar to me almost at all. I don't think I'd even put together that they looked like dupes. The only similarity in the packaging is their using pink and black. And not even the same pink.

Omgggg that top looks so good on you!! You look incredible! ❤

This opening sounds like what happens to pharmaceutical companies.

Thank you so much for this video! As a law student specializing in intellectual property law with a focus on the protection of the outer aspectsof products, I’ve always wondered how makeup dupes are dealt with on a legal standpoint, but there’s not much literature/case law on this matter so I had no idea if and how brands and courts approach this type of controversies. You provided a lot of interesting cues and ideas that I can delve into in my studies, and I hope you will make more videos like this in the future! Love from Italy ❤

On the one hand, there are a finite number of colors, formulas, finishes/effects etc and if one brand gets it down pat better than the others, oh well. On the other, I do agree that product packaging and design IP needs to be protected more

There are sooooo many make-up brands now .... Seriously, I wouldnt even know if a NEW product I am looking to purchase LOOKS like one from another brand. Personally, I know what works for me, and I would forever purchase the same foundation or mascara etc ... if only companies would stop discontinuing and reformulating every year. Who (in the customer base) really has the time or inclination to see if a product's outward appearance is the same as some other? This (in my opinion) is something that corporate lawyers do to justify their existence

Today I learned jail and prison are different things. Thank you

My partner works in a product development team, and I work in compliance with some experience in DEI (neither of us are in beauty though). The product development part of this role is the description of an entire department, and the compliance portion of the role is a full team of people with probably at least 1 person with a law degree. DEI is often 1-2 people who do DEI full time. They want a single person run the entire company by themselves who had a law degree and a business management degree.

I did not think that anything about the elf could be confused with the benefit except for the name… the name definitely got a side eye and that in my opinion is what makes people know It is a dupe or an inspiration product but would I ever confuse those two heck no. But like you said…I live here.

I like elf. At its price point, the quality is good. I think elf can stand alone with its own look. I'll continue buying the elf products that I like. Because I don't think they copied it to the point where you and mistaken it for another brand. Do I wish, they would be less inspired, buy other brands, in the look of it? Yes Right now, they haven't crossed that line to where I feel yucky, buying elf. I'm just saying I would feel better, if they found their own look. I think they made what's a name for themselves, & or are good enough, they don't have to play the inspired by game. 😁✌️

I am not a lawyer (or even American) but: While the intro to this video (having an idea and working hard to unexpectedly be copied) may be true to smaller indie brands, this is not at all how bigger brands work. It's not one person coming up with this great idea for a mascara and creating a team of people to help them make their idea come true and wow it's incredible. These people are hired to make things. There's a department full of people whose job it is to come up with the "next big [makeup product]". Be that a mascara, a blush, whatever. They're looking at the trends and they're being paid to do this. An indie brand is doing this on their own, they have the ideas and they market and sell it. It's maybe a few people doing it. At a bigger brand, it's several times that. Roller Lash is very unlikely to have been created by just one person having a great idea - it's probably a lot of people who wrote down everything they knew about mascaras because they were told that they need to create a new mascara. They were told that it was going to be volumising, so work with that. So they work with that and alongside marketing and R&D and labs, you get Roller Lash. The thing with dupes is that you can't copyright a formula or a particular product, you can only copyright the things surrounding it, like the name and packaging. So the term "mascara" can be used by anyone, the formula can be near identical, but the packaging and name has to be different. Similarly, the colour of a blush can't be copyrighted. You can have a dozen brands make the exact same colour blush and be absolutely fine legally. But if they start infringing on the name or packaging, then they are going to get a call from someone's legal department. When it comes to the "stealing customer base" things, it's not about people who like makeup. It's basically for the lowest common denominator person. This person is not going to know the difference between Benefit and elf, they don't know the price difference or whether one is supposed to be better quality. Or maybe they have a vague knowledge that Benefit is fancier and you can see elf at lower prices. Maybe it's some guy who has decided to buy his girlfriend a present and he has the vaguest idea of brands. What the lawsuit is saying is that this man might see the elf mascara and say that it's probably the same as the Benefit one but cheaper, and so he'll buy the elf one as a present to his girlfriend. It's not about the people who are into makeup and know the difference and maybe have a preference one way or the other when it comes to brands. But then the idea that they're losing money to elf does apply to makeup lovers a bit. So if people think they can get this famous mascara for cheap, they're going to buy it for cheap. The people who are into makeup, who are willing to spend money on makeup (even if it's just one mid-range mascara), are going to flock to elf instead. They'll still have loyal customers and people who'd rather try the original, but they'll lose out to elf when it comes to the undecided people. Personally, I think regulating dupes is tricky. I don't have issues with dupes, and I think it's hypocritical to be against one brand creating "dupes" but another brand doing the same thing is fine. New products aren't created in a vacuum. They come from watching the same things other brands are watching, and then also watching the other brands. In the same way copyright law when it comes to music is very tricky and controversial, I think it's the same with makeup. I think regulating trade dress is about as close as you can come to regulating dupes and it still being okay for brands and consumers. I do think elf went too far, and they should know that as a not-insignificant brand themselves. They have a legal department who should've looked into this before it was released. I think a lot of brands have been flying a bit too close to the sun and I'm not surprised this has happened. The issue is that "dupes" have become their own industry within the makeup industry. All these products go viral and trends get created and every brand wants to have their moment to show off and go "we're cool, we know what you're talking about, that's why you should buy our new product which we luckily have just released just now just for you! don't buy that expensive product, we made the same thing but cheaper, just for you especially!". Think about all the clickable lipsticks/tinted lip balm things that have been popping up still. Every brand needs their own version to tempt people to buy from them instead. You could buy the Hourglass or Tarte version, but why not try the Nyx or Colourpop version? There's the same product for everyone, with different qualities and at different price points. You want it more sheer? Go to Catrice. You want it to be tingling? Go to Colourpop. You want to experience the luxury of a higher end brand? Go to Hourglass. They're all essentially dupes of each other, but trying to entice customers away from a different dupe because this one is more pigmented or lasts longer or has a different special ingredient. I think back when dupes were unspoken by brands, that was a better environment for creativity and branding. When it was left to the consumers to find the dupes. The brand shouldn't be concentrating on marketing their products as second best to a different product. "You can't afford this, but you can get the same thing from us! We're not the ones who went viral, but we can do the exact same thing at a cheaper price!". Now the industry is about watching other brands and then copying their homework while changing a few words, and we're being swamped with the same products again and again and again and no one needs this many clickable lip things! It's fine! We've reached the saturation point!!! But the brands aren't going to stop because we're fed up, they're going to stop when it doesn't make them money to copy anymore. And they're going to make money from copying because all of their business practices are about copying now. Getting as close to saying it's the same as this other product without actually legally saying it. The people who come up with products are just being paid to watch Tiktok and see what's going to go viral next and rush a product to production. And that does suck for both brands and consumers.

I think if someone were in an ulta, they might get confused between benefit and elf.

I am not a fan of the elf dupe for roller lash It flakes soooo much. I tried it so many times and it just was awful. It was too dry too

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It feels a bit... bleak. Little girls are getting so fixated on these things so young, while boys get to focus on hobbies. Games, sports, comics, whatever. I feel like society does this enough to kids, parents should be encouraging their daughters to not put so much value on their appearance. All a kid needs to learn at that age is to wash their hands using the bathroom, and putting on SPF/ taking it off daily, and brushing their teeth. Literally why are kids putting so much time and money into this? Why are parents letting corporations tell their children that they need all of this?

I understand people riding for elf (good quality/affordable/cruelty free), but if you can’t see elf blatantly copying other popular products and selling them for less to make bank, then idk what to tell you lol. They were gonna get sued eventually, if not by benefit then a different brand.

There’s no way I would think they were literally the same. I think it’s obvious that it’s a dupe in a similar way to the generic grocery products at supermarkets, target, Walmart, etc. I also think trademark laws very very very rarely benefit (haha) the little guy, due to how the legal system works and how expensive it is. I’ve see. Brands like forever 21 and Zara rip off Etsy designers and where’s an Etsy seller going to get the hundreds of thousands of dollars to argue this in court? Even attempting it could make them lose absolutely everything. I’m glad Manny had the platform to call out Revolution, that’s realistically his only recourse and he was way more financial resources than an Etsy seller. I think the best we can hope for with these laws is that no one is tricking a consumer into thinking they’re literally buying something different than they think they’re buying. Like a direct fake product or knockoff, when the consumer thinks they are buying the real thing, not a dupe.