Fresh blow for Meghan Markle and Prince Harry as Archetypes patent bid fails amid Kate Middleton rumours; Scottish Daily Express, June 22, 2023

Douglas Dickie,  Scottish Daily Express; Fresh blow for Meghan Markle and Prince Harry as Archetypes patent bid fails amid Kate Middleton rumours

"Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have been dealt a fresh blow after an attempt to trademark their Archetypes podcast failed. The Sussexes had hoped to bag exclusive rights to the name as they look to find a new platform for it after splitting with Spotify.

But their hopes were dashed by the US Patent and Trademark Office which refused to grant the request due to potential confusion with an existing company. Meghan had produced just 12 episodes and a Christmas special of Archetypes for Spotify before the £18 million deal was ended...

However, it emerged that a trademark for Archetypes LLC already existed. An Arizonian firm claimed it in 2015 for use in a series of books and articles about "nutrition, fitness, sexuality, psychological self-improvement"."

A Trademark Attorney Explains Why the Former Lady Antebellum Is Suing the Black Singer Lady A; Slate, July 10, 2020

Rachelle Hampton, Slate; A Trademark Attorney Explains Why the Former Lady Antebellum Is Suing the Black Singer Lady A

"Trademark rights are what the Lady A dispute centers on. As we discussed today, trademark rights arise from use of any word, phrase, logo, symbol, etc., as a source indicator in connection with the sale of specific goods or services, like Greyhound for bus services or Dasani for bottled water or Tony the Tiger for cereal or a [Nike] swoosh for athletic apparel."

Lawsuit: Target's Good & Gather line infringes trademark of Georgia woman's business; USA Today, November 22, 2019

Nicquel Terry Ellis, USA Today; Lawsuit: Target's Good & Gather line infringes trademark of Georgia woman's business

"A Georgia woman has filed a federal lawsuit against Target claiming the retail giant stole her trademark when it launched its Good & Gather flagship food brand in September.

Emily Golub, founder of the Atlanta-based Garnish & Gather, said the name, logo and products sold in Target's Good & Gather line are too similar to the business name she trademarked in 2014 and could create confusion in the market."

After trademark dispute, Voodoo Brewery relaunches Pitt-themed beer with tongue-in-cheek name; The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, June 12, 2018

Adam Bittner, The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; After trademark dispute, Voodoo Brewery relaunches Pitt-themed beer with tongue-in-cheek name

"The West Coast-style India Pale Ale’s original branding was scuttled just days after its seasonal distribution to coincide with football season began last fall. Pitt attorneys contacted the brewery to contest the use of university-owned marks including the Cathedral of Learning and script lettering on the packaging, and Meadville-based Voodoo promptly began stripping labels off of cans to comply."

Pandora Just Taught Every Business Out There What Not to Do In Logo Redesign; Inc.com, May 24, 2017

Wanda Thibodeaux, Inc.com; Pandora Just Taught Every Business Out There What Not to Do In Logo Redesign

"It's one of the most basic rules of business: Choose a logo that represents you and only you. After all, logos are supposed to be an identifier for your brand. But apparently, it's a lesson that Pandora hasn't quite learned yet. As Nicole Gallucci of Mashable reports, PayPal is suing the music streaming company for trademark infringement, claiming that Pandora's 2016 logo redesign is too similar to its own...

7 tips to avoid Pandora's trouble

If you, like Pandora, have to come up with something new, keep these rules in mind:..

Oh, and when in doubt? There are these great professionals known as lawyers. Talk to one."

Four Reasons EMC Was First To Use A Trademark And Still Lost Its Case; Forbes, April 19, 2017

Jess Collen, Forbes; 

Four Reasons EMC Was First To Use A Trademark And Still Lost Its Case

"Do you get superior rights to use a trademark when you are the first to file for registration with the United States Patent and Trademark Office?

Not necessarily. A lot of companies know this already. The earliest date of first use usually prevails, even over a federal trademark registration. Sometimes, the question of “who did what, and when?” is difficult to sort out. To earn trademark rights, you must use the mark in a way that creates a sufficient association between your trademark, and your product, in the minds of the purchasing public. Not all use is created equal."

Vegas Golden Knights' trademark request denied by U.S. patent office; Associated Press via ESPN, 12/8/16

Associated Press via ESPN; Vegas Golden Knights' trademark request denied by U.S. patent office:

"The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has denied the Vegas Golden Knights' trademark application a little more than two weeks after the new NHL franchise unveiled its name and logo.

The office on Wednesday cited potential confusion with the team name for the College of Saint Rose in New York, which is also the Golden Knights. The Las Vegas franchise is set to take the ice next season...

The patent office said the similarities were too many to overlook.

"In this case, the marks are identical in part, sharing the same dominant wording and overall commercial impression," the office said in denying the application. "The nature of the applicant's and registrant's services is similar; both offer sports entertainment of a kind available in the same venues, broadcast on television, and are generally available to the same class of consumers. Accordingly, the examining attorney concludes that there is a likelihood of confusion between the applicant's and registrant's marks.""

Tito's Tacos to change name following trademark tangle; Brattleboro Reformer, 10/3/16

Robert Audette, Brattleboro Reformer; Tito's Tacos to change name following trademark tangle:

"Victoroff requested that the Reformer "immediately remove the aforementioned infringing material from its website, immediately notify the source of the infringing content of this notice, inform them of their duty to remove the infringing material immediately, and notify them to cease any further posting of infringing material to The Brattleboro Reformer News website in the future."

The Reformer has declined to take down the picture on First Amendment grounds.

In a response, Fredric D. Rutberg, the president of New England Newspapers Inc., which owns the Reformer, refused to remove the picture from the Reformer's website.

"The photo in question depicts a local food vendor whose sign identifies his business as Tito's Tacos," wrote Rutberg. "While this use of the name Tito's Tacos may indeed infringe on your client's registered trademark, it is our opinion that the photo in question does not constitute an infringement of your client's trademark. At best it is a 'fair use' of trademarked material."

"Tito's greatly respects your newspaper's First Amendment rights of free speech," Victoroff responded in an email to Rutberg, "but the use of its trademarked name in the [photo and news story] seriously dilutes and erodes its trademark. ... Every day the Tito's Tacos family must defend and protect its trademark rights from death by 1,000 cuts or risk losing its name and trademark.""

Seattle salon shares trademark warning for small businesses; King5.com, 9/1/16

[Video] Heather Graf, King5.com; Seattle salon shares trademark warning for small businesses:

""The fact that they're spelled differently in this case really doesn't offer much protection," said attorney Robert Cumbow of Miller Nash Graham & Dunn. "How much do they look alike? How much do they sound alike? How close are they in meaning? And in this case, they look a lot alike. There's one extra extra letter in them. And they sound identical."

Cumbow said he knows it's a costly and frustrating experience for small business owners. His advice is for those business owners to do extensive research before choosing the name of their company.

"You've got to do your homework," he said. "So the very first thing for someone who is choosing a name for their business, product, or services is to get a search done, and make sure you aren't accidentally picking a name or product name that somebody else is already using.""

C Train Cafe? Transit Agency May Put Up Fight M.T.A. Guards Against Copyright Infringement; New York Times, 8/23/13

Matt Flegenheimer, New York Times; C Train Cafe? Transit Agency May Put Up Fight; M.T.A. Guards Against Copyright Infringement: "Powered in part by the rise of online shopping, which has helped small-time entrepreneurs market their subway-inspired creations widely, the transit agency now issues up to 600 notices a year for copyright infringements to protect trademarks on train line logos and other system imagery. That represents a more than twentyfold increase since 2005...Subway, rail and bus maps are copyright protected, and each subway line symbol is a federally registered trademark. Even in borderline cases — where a business uses a subway logo, for example, but alters the color scheme slightly — the authority often has wide latitude in issuing infringement notices “if there’s reason for confusion,” Mr. Heavey said...In 2010, Nordstrom received a letter from the authority after a dress emblazoned with a subway map was found in its online catalog. Transit officials were “pleased” that Nordstrom recognized the map as “a clever, colorful design that is fit for a silk dress,” the letter said, but less pleased about the copyright breach. A spokeswoman for Nordstrom said the dress was no longer available."