L.L. Bean is arguably the apparel brand most widely associated with the outdoors, but when the plaid-clad company dared to use the term “outsider” in a marketing campaign, it put its duck boot into a bit of a legal mess. [More]
trademark
Netflix To Unsanctioned ‘Stranger Things’ Bar: “Please Don’t Make Us Call Your Mom”
By 9.19.17
Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery — or so they say — but that doesn’t mean that just anyone can go around using popular TV shows to make a few bucks. So although Netflix thinks a Stranger Things-themed pop-up bar in Chicago is fun, it’s insisting that the venue shut down after its planned six-week run. [More]
Costco To Pay $19.4M To Tiffany & Co. For Selling Bogus ‘Tiffany’ Rings
By 8.15.17
Costco learned a very expensive lesson this week: A “Tiffany” ring is a specific product sold by a specific company; not just a generic name for any diamond engagement ring. Now the warehouse retailer must pay Tiffany & Company $19.4 million for marketing and selling “Tiffany” diamond rings that had nothing to do with the famed jewelry store. [More]
Wrigley Sues Vape Company Over “Joosy Fruit,” “Dbl Mint” E-Cigarette Flavors
By 7.17.17
E-cigarette manufacturers have long produced liquid nicotine in a variety of flavors, like strawberry or cotton candy, as a way to entice users with something that doesn’t simply taste like nicotine or smoke. But Chicago vape company’s attempt to appeal to customers’ palettes has garnered the ire of candy maker Wrigley, which accused the e-liquid maker of infringing on its Juicy Fruit and Doublemint brands. [More]
Red Lobster In Legal Battle With Music Festival Over The Word “Summerfest”
By 7.5.17
People tend to add suffixes like “-fest,” “-athon,” or “-palooza” to just about any event these days, but some of these promotional names are well established and protected by registered trademarks. Which is why a beloved Wisconsin music festival is taking seafood chain Red Lobster to court over its use of “Summerfest.” [More]
Small Bakery Changes Name After Legal Threat From Pillsbury Doughboy’s Lawyer
By 6.13.17
A small bakery that hasn’t even been open for a year is already having to spend thousands of dollars to change its name after General Mills took issue with the shop’s use of the term “doughboy.” [More]
Hormel Worried People Will Confuse ‘Black Label’ Beggin’ Strips With Its Real Bacon
By 5.30.17 — Updated: 6.1.17
Hormel makes bacon for human consumption, while Nestlé Purina makes bacon — or Beggin’ Strips — for dogs. The bacon and Beggin’ worlds have generally played nice with each other, but then Purina came out with “Black Label” Beggin’ Strips, which hits too close to home for Hormel. [More]
Irish Burger Chain Goes After McDonald’s For Trademarking Every ‘Mc’ Or ‘Mac’ Name
By 4.12.17
Names beginning with “Mc” or “Mac” are incredibly common, but selling food using some variation on either of these could result in a cease-and-desist demand from McDonald’s. Now one Irish burger chain is challenging McDonald’s ability to claim a trademark on every Mc/Mac eatery everywhere. [More]
Supreme Court Hears Arguments In Dispute Over “Scandalous” Trademarks
By 1.18.17 — Updated: 1.19.17
Should your company’s brand, slogan, or logo lose its federal trademark protection just because it’s offensive? Under current law, yes, but today the Supreme Court heard arguments in a case that questions whether or not the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office should involve itself in questions of taste. [More]
SpongeBob Wins Legal Victory Against Planned “Krusty Krab” Restaurant
By 1.13.17 — Updated: 1.17.17
Creators of popular movies, TV shows, books, and video games are sometimes savvy enough to register unique characters and fictional places with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, but a federal court ruling in a case involving SpongeBob Squarepants shows that a fictional business need not be trademarked in order to benefit from trademark protection. [More]
Run-DMC Suing Online Retailers, Including Amazon and Walmart, For $50 Million
By 12.30.16
Run-DMC might have broken up 14 years ago, but the name and the musical legend live on in the world of licensed, endorsed merchandise. Unfortunately, according to a new lawsuit, the Run-DMC name also lives on in infringing merchandise being sold by major online stores. [More]
Splenda Goes To War With Dunkin’ Donuts Over Lookalike Sweetener
By 11.10.16
You won’t find little, pale-yellow packets of Splenda at Dunkin’ Donuts, but you will find little pale-yellow packets of a knockoff version of the sweetener. Heartland Consumer Products, the company behind Splenda, is taking Dunkin’ to court, claiming the coffee-and-donut chain is misleading consumers into thinking they are getting the real Splenda when it’s just a knockoff. [More]
Bong Maker Must Pay Starbucks Nearly $500K Over Copyright Violations For “Dabuccino”
By 10.25.16
Coffee and bongs: While you might not expect the two things to be related, they are. Or at least, they were in a recent copyright lawsuit that saw coffee giant Starbucks sue the maker of frappuccino-shaped bongs. [More]
Apple: 90% Of “Apple” Power Accessories Sold On Amazon Are Fake
By 10.19.16 — Updated: 10.20.16
For years, Amazon and Apple have fought their own battles when it comes to counterfeit products: third-party retailers selling lookalike Apple accessories and companies hawking fake name-brand products on the e-commerce site. Now, the two issues have come together, with a lawsuit claiming that 90% of the supposed Apple power accessories listed on the site are fake. [More]
Oakland Raiders File Trademark Applications For “Las Vegas Raiders”
By 8.25.16
Even though the Oakland Raiders have not yet received the NFL’s blessing to relocate (again), the team appears to be protecting a potential Las Vegas future from potential trademark raiders. [More]
Budweiser Accused Of Illegally Using Official Tribal Logo & Slogan In Local Beer Ads
By 6.15.16
“Immoral, unethical, oppressive, unscrupulous”: those are the adjectives a Native American tribe in North Carolina chose in a recently filed lawsuit to describe Anheuser-Busch InBev’s use of the official tribal logo and slogan in a local ad campaign. [More]
Michigan Cafe To Change Name After Caribou Coffee Wins Trademark Lawsuit
By 5.26.16
Several years ago a small New Hampshire coffee roaster won a legal victory (twice) against coffee giant Starbucks over its name “Charbucks.” Things didn’t go so well for a Michigan cafe that must retire its name “Blue Caribou Cafe” after losing a trademark lawsuit filed by Caribou Coffee. [More]
Facebook Wins Trademark Victory Over China’s “Face Book” Beverages & Snacks
By 5.9.16
Five years ago, China’s Zhongshan Pearl River Drinks filed trademark applications for “Face Book” branded beverages and snacks, hoping to ride the wave of popularity for the social media platform even though it’s banned in the country. Today, a court in Beijing handed the real Facebook a rare victory for this sort of trademark case, revoking this use of the famous brand. [More]
