Lego clone brands, or "fake Lego" as you have referred to, I think fall into two categories.

The first, and most problematic are the outright rip offs of other Lego designs. Copying other people's intellectual property and producing it as an inferior quality product - Lepin and LeLe are prime examples here.

Then you have the likes of Megabloks and Kre-o. Whilst being a clone brand in terms of being an interlocking brick system, they have sourced their own ideas and models, have brokered their own licencing agreements and all told, are just presenting consumers with an alternative to Lego.

As for the corporate logos, I agree it would be great to see some familiar brands sneak into our cityscapes (though a quick search on eBay will generally find stickers that can be applied). I too remember fondly the old Shell Petrol sets, though I guess the risk in partnering with these brands, is the need to ensure they hold similar social values. Remember the Exxon Valdez or the BP Gulf of Mexico catastrophe? Nobody would want to be associated with those events.

Having said that, we see Lego partnering with a number of different vehicle manufacturers for models, so you never know what the future holds.