{"id":1062,"date":"2015-03-09T15:20:09","date_gmt":"2015-03-09T15:20:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/?p=1062"},"modified":"2015-03-09T15:20:09","modified_gmt":"2015-03-09T15:20:09","slug":"trademark-tactics-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/2015\/03\/09\/trademark-tactics-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Trademark tactics"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"The<\/a>

The WalletHub logo is being opposed by Major League Baseball on behalf of the Washington Nationals and Chicago Cubs. (Courtesy of Evolution Finance) (All Courtesy of Washington Post)<\/p><\/div>\n

A post from our student blogger Roberto<\/em><\/p>\n

When many hear the words \u201cintellectual property\u201d they think only of patents.\u00a0 In fact, there are many other forms of protection that are available depending on the subject matter.\u00a0 For example, a trademark can be filed to protect any word, name, symbol, or design, or any combination of the proceeding, to be used in commerce.\u00a0 This identifies and distinguishes the goods of one from the goods of another and serves as indication of the source of goods.\u00a0 Not surprisingly, most of the work of patent agents relates to patents.\u00a0 However, it is important to understand the other types of protect that exists and how they may fit in with your client\u2019s needs.<\/p>\n

For me, it has always been easiest to learn through examples.\u00a0 Better still, it is more fun to learn through examples that peak my interest.\u00a0 As you will likely find out in the coming months (through subsequent posts) I am an avid baseball fan and even play on a team back in Milwaukee.\u00a0 With spring training starting just a few days ago, and a torturous ending to the Packers\u2019 season, I admittedly have a bad case of baseball fever.\u00a0 Out of the blue, I decided to do an online search for \u201cbaseball intellectual property\u201d.\u00a0 Oddly enough, there were a few news outlets covering a trademark dispute<\/a> between the Chicago Cubs (Booooo!!), the Washington Nationals, and a small Washington D.C. startup called Evolution Finance.\u00a0 Evolution Finance uses the trademark to represent WalletHub, a Web site they run where consumers can compare credit cards and find personal finance advice.\u00a0 The dispute is over Evolution\u2019s application for a trademark, the white W on the green background, which Major League Baseball (MLB) is opposing because of the trademarks owned by their clubs, the Cubs and Nationals.\u00a0 While I have watched baseball my entire life, well since I can remember, I have watched baseball.\u00a0 One of my first memories was hitting baseballs off a tee in my backyard and I can\u2019t tell you how many summer hours I have put in on the diamond.\u00a0 Even with my knowledge of baseball, I had absolutely no idea what the Cubs\u2019 trademark was from.\u00a0 While I had never seen the Washington trademark because it was from their early Senators years (1912-1927<\/a>), I was shocked to hear that the Cubs trademark had been used at least 38 times each season since the 1940\u2019s.\u00a0 In fact, the Cubs trademark is actually depicted on a flag<\/a> that is hoisted at their home stadium, Wrigley Field, after each home victory.\u00a0 After learning this, it made sense to me why I had not seen the flag before.<\/p>\n

MLB is arguing that consumers may be confused by the Evolution Finance trademark and mistakenly associate it with baseball or believe that it is endorsed or partnered with MLB.\u00a0 Conversely, Evolution Finance is arguing that their uses are substantially different than those of MLB and that the uber-powerful baseball conglomerate is attempting to hijack the letter W and all its potential uses.\u00a0 Currently the two sides are awaiting a trial before the Trademark Trial and Appeals Board which will decide the fate of Evolution Finance\u2019s trademark.<\/p>\n

In a follow up to my last post, it looks like football player has followed in Marshawn Lynch\u2019s footsteps and filed their own trademark application.\u00a0 Jameis Winston, the highly touted and potential first overall selection in this year\u2019s draft, has filed a trademark<\/a> application on his nickname \u201cFamous Jameis\u201d.\u00a0 In addition to the contract he will sign, last year\u2019s number one pick Jadeveon Clowney signed for $23M guaranteed, Winston will look to cash in on branding much like Lynch aims to do.\u00a0 The trend of sports players seeking trademark protection for nicknames or catch phrases definitely seems to be heating up.\u00a0 In recent years<\/a> Johnny Manziel, Roberto Griffin III, Jared Allen, Darrelle Revis and former players John Elway, Bart Scott, Michael Strahan, and Terrell Owens all have filed trademarks.\u00a0 Given the cash cow that sports marketing is, it is not surprising that athletes are looking to capitalize.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A post from our student blogger Roberto When many hear the words \u201cintellectual property\u201d they think only of patents.\u00a0 In fact, there are many other forms of protection that are available depending on the subject matter.\u00a0 For example, a trademark … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":649,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29602],"tags":[29581,49331,49348,49337,29592],"class_list":["post-1062","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-student-blog-posts","tag-ip","tag-mspl-student","tag-patent-agent","tag-patent-agent-job","tag-patent-law"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1062","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/649"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1062"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1062\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1063,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1062\/revisions\/1063"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1062"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1062"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1062"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}