The LEGO Group's name has become so synonymous with its flagship toy that many refer to the bricks themselves (collectively) as "Lego" or "Legos" (the latter term being common in US English, but rarely used in British English), although the Lego Group considers such uses to be trademark dilution. Lego catalogues in the 1970s and 1980s contained a note that read:
"The word LEGO® is a brand name and is very special to all of us in the LEGO Group Companies. We would sincerely like your help in keeping it special. Please always refer to our bricks as 'LEGO Bricks or Toys' and not 'LEGOS.' By doing so, you will be helping to protect and preserve a brand of which we are very proud and that stands for quality the world over. Thank you! Susan Williams, Consumer Services."
The official Lego website is
http://www.lego.com. For many years, visitors to
http://www.legos.com (also registered to the Lego Group) have received notices similar to the one pictured, and were intentionally redirected to the official website, to further protect the brand.
LEGO is officially written in all uppercase letters. The company asserts that to protect its brand name, the word Lego must always be used as an adjective, as in "LEGO set", "LEGO products", "LEGO universe", and so forth. Nevertheless, such corporate admonitions are frequently ignored and the word Lego is commonly used not only as a noun to refer to Lego bricks, but also as a generic term referring to any kind of interlocking toy brick.
