trademarks

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Ukraine Can't Trademark Salty Russian Insult

'Go f--- yourself' is perceived as a political slogan, EU court says

(Newser) - Ukraine's attempt to register the slogan "Russian warship, go f--- yourself" as a trademark has been rejected by the Court of Justice of the European Union. Politico reports that, in a ruling issued Wednesday, the court said registration of the term as an EU trademark has been rejected...

KFC Has Beef With Another Chain Over 'Original Recipe'

Iconic chicken chain sues Church's Texas Chicken over use of the term, not the recipe

(Newser) - The phrase "Our original recipe is back" doesn't seem a likely one to inspire litigation, and yet here we are. As CNN reports, iconic purveyor of all things fried chicken, KFC, has filed a lawsuit against Church's Texas Chicken—not over its swiping of the fast-food holy...

'David' Says It Beat 'Goliath' in 'Big Mac' Trademark Fight

Irish rival Supermac's contested McDonald's use of the label for certain items

(Newser) - The decision is about more than burger names, but when it comes to burger names, it's a big one. McDonald's on Wednesday lost a European Union trademark dispute over the Big Mac name after a top EU court sided with Irish fast-food rival Supermac's in a long-running...

Celeb Chef Chang Is Labeled a 'Trademark Bully'

Dispute erupts in Asian cuisine over the rights to 'chili crunch' name

(Newser) - A nasty fight has erupted among the purveyors of Asian cuisine over what they can call a popular condiment broadly known as chili crisp, reports Eater . Momofuku, a food company founded by celebrity chef David Chang, has sent cease-and-desist letters to several businesses using the name "chili crunch" or...

Final Holdout in 'Taco Tuesday' Battle Gives In

Taco Bell gets last restaurant to relinquish its trademark of the phrase

(Newser) - Taco Bell has been trying to ensure the phrase "Taco Tuesday" is available for anyone (including, of course, Taco Bell) to use, and the fast food chain notched a big win in its battle over the trademarking of the phrase back in July, when the chain Taco John's,...

Twitter May Have a Problem With Its Shiny New Logo

Trademark infringement questions arise over news that Meta, Microsoft also have 'X' registered

(Newser) - "X" may not mark the spot after all for Elon Musk in his attempted rebrand of Twitter. Although Musk has officially unveiled the 24th letter of the alphabet as his social media site's new name and identity, Insider reports that rival Meta appears to own the trademark for...

Taco Bell on Trademark War: 'Taco Tuesday' Belongs to All

Fast-food giant asks Patent and Trademark Office to force smaller chain to give up rights to the term

(Newser) - Declaring a mission to liberate "Taco Tuesday" for all, Taco Bell is asking US regulators to force Wyoming-based Taco John's to abandon its long-standing claim to the trademark. Too many businesses and others refer to "Taco Tuesday" for Taco John's to be able to have exclusive...

Baghdad's 'Starbucks' Points to Growing Problem in Iraq

Country is a hub for trademark violation, costing companies billions

(Newser) - Everything from the signboard outside down to the napkins bears the official emblem of the top international coffee chain. But in Baghdad, looks are deceiving: The "Starbucks" in the Iraqi capital is unlicensed. Real Starbucks merchandise is imported from neighboring countries to stock the three cafes in the city,...

Sorry, Mariah, You're Not the Only 'Queen of Christmas'

Trademark office denies singer's claim for rights to the phrase

(Newser) - Mariah Carey isn't getting the holiday gift she wanted from the US Patent and Trademark Office. The office on Tuesday denied the singer's request to trademark "Queen of Christmas," after rejecting her applications for "QOC" and "Princess Christmas" earlier this month, per the Washington ...

Fastest Man in the World Wants Ownership of His Victory Pose

Retired sprinter Usain Bolt has filed to trademark signature celebration move to use logo on merch

(Newser) - If you're a famous athlete with the name "Bolt," and you've got a signature victory move that resembles a jagged line of electricity, chances are you're going to make sure you control that likeness. There's only one man this situation currently applies to in...

Judge Tosses Girl Scouts' Suit Arguing Branding Confusion

Boy Scouts can avoid gender references by using 'scouting,' ruling says

(Newser) - Update: The Girl Scouts have lost the legal argument that its brand and recruiting efforts have been damaged by the wording used by Boy Scouts in marketing. Because Boy Scouts are entitled to leave gender out of it by using "scouting" and similar terms, "there are no issues...

Banksy Just Suffered a 'Devastating' Loss

Street artist loses EU trademark fight with greeting card company over his own artwork

(Newser) - In a desperate move to claim the trademark for one of his most famous works, British street artist Banksy, usually known for floating untethered in anonymity, opened up a shop last fall, hoping to sway European Union judges in his favor. His efforts—deemed a "weakass attempt" by Techdirt...

Kylie Jenner's New Trademark Attempt Raises Eyebrows

Billionaire sees a business opportunity in 'rise and shine'

(Newser) - Kylie Jenner is trying to trademark the phrase "rise and shine" after singing it to her daughter in a viral video clip. The nine-second clip —taken from a YouTube video in which Jenner offered a tour of the Kylie Cosmetics offices—has been viewed 15 million times in...

Ohio State University Loses Bid to Trademark 'The'

Patent office says it 'didn't function as a trademark'

(Newser) - Ohio State University has lost its bid to trademark the most common word in the English language. The United States Patent Office has turned down an application from Ohio State —which likes to be referred to as "The Ohio State University"—to trademark the word "the"...

It's Not 'a' Ohio State, Trademark Filing Says

University applies to protect 'the'

(Newser) - To make sure no one confuses the various Ohio State universities, the one in Columbus has filed an application with the US Patent and Trademark Office to trademark the word "the." The school wants to protect its use of "the" in large letters above the Ohio State...

Coffee Shop: Big Company Has 'Ridiculous' Claim on Word 'Cat'

Cat and Cloud Coffee is pushing back on Caterpillar's trademark infringement claim

(Newser) - The world of copyright and trademark infringement is a tricky one that often involves David vs. Goliath battles—a truth that a coffee shop in Santa Cruz, Calif., is finding out the hard way. KSBW reports that Cat and Cloud Coffee first received a cease-and-desist order last August from none...

Case of the Brand That Sounds Profane Heads to Supreme Court

Erik Brunetti has long tried to get a trademark for his Fuct streetwear

(Newser) - Nearly 30 years ago, Erik Brunetti, along with skateboarder Natas Kaupas, founded a streetwear company with a name that, depending on how it's said, could sound profane. They started Fuct with no major issues, save for the trademark they tried to get for the name—one that the Patent...

McDonald's Lost a Big Mac Trademark. BK Pounced

Burger King restaurants in Sweden are now selling 'Not Big Macs'

(Newser) - So you're a fast-food giant that loses a trademark for one of your most popular offerings—what's the worst that can happen? Your rival could decide to mercilessly troll you, for one. That's what's happening to McDonald's in the EU, where the chain recently lost...

P&G Scheme to Lure Millennials Has Folks Saying 'WTF'

Procter & Gamble files trademark applications for 4 popular acronyms: WTF, LOL, NBD, and FML

(Newser) - Acronym-heavy news reports are proliferating after a recent development regarding Procter & Gamble. Ad Age reports that the consumer-goods behemoth has put in the paperwork for the rights to use four well-known letter combinations—WTF, LOL, NBD (which stands for "no big deal"), and FML ("f--- my...

A Bittersweet Ruling Against KitKat in the EU

High court says shape of Nestle chocolate bar isn't unique enough to merit trademark protection

(Newser) - "Four trapezoidal bars aligned on a rectangular base" may not be instantly recognizable. Put that setup in chocolate form, however, and many people would be able to distinguish it as a KitKat. Even if that's the case, the European Union's highest court just ruled that the shape...

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