Branding wars

[Cycleops]

I like them both
We got some in Turkey covered in nuts, lovely

And I've got some nuts covered in turkey but that's another story.

 

[midlife]

I bet the Martians are a bit peed off too !

Shaun

 

[Mrs M]

And I've got some nuts covered in turkey but that's another story.

 

[DRM]

I don't understand how this is a dispute given that honest "geographic origin" descriptions don't infringe trademarks - see (2)(b) in http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1994/26/section/11

Didn't Specialized come a cropper by trying to sue the owner of Cafe Roubaix, their agressive lawsuit got a lot of cyclists backs up, many people at the time on various forums were refusing to buy another Specialized product if they went through with it, so in this case it really blew up in their faces, but yes, how on earth can any company own the name of a town.

 

[swee'pea99]

Iceland (the frozen food retailer) has a European trademark on the word “Iceland”, and has attempted to legally stop Iceland (the Country) labelling products withe the Country's name, "product of Iceland" or similar

Iceland (Founded before the Supermarket) is now challenging

Sounds like a PR stunt to me. There's no way any company could be given a prior claim to a country's name. Surely. The whole thing does remind me of that comment that went round after the footie: 'So that's the second time we've been dumped out of Europe: once by Iceland, and once by the people that shop there.'

 

[ufkacbln]

Sounds like a PR stunt to me. There's no way any company could be given a prior claim to a country's name. Surely. The whole thing does remind me of that comment that went round after the footie: 'So that's the second time we've been dumped out of Europe: once by Iceland, and once by the people that shop there.'

It is genuine

 

[mjr]

Didn't Specialized come a cropper by trying to sue the owner of Cafe Roubaix, their agressive lawsuit got a lot of cyclists backs up, many people at the time on various forums were refusing to buy another Specialized product if they went through with it, so in this case it really blew up in their faces, but yes, how on earth can any company own the name of a town.

They came a cropper, not because they took on the town of Roubaix, but because Fuji Bikes had an earlier trademark on it in the USA!

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

I bet the Martians are a bit peed off too !

Shaun

Had it not been for the fear of being deep fried by us Scotch lot I am fairly sure the Martians would have been a bit more proactive in making contact.

 

[Dayvo]

Will the loser have to change their name to Bejam?

Sorry, the bees got there first.

 

[User169]

Hmm. I don't think Iceland the supermarket has ever sued Iceland the country on the basis of the mark as the OP suggests.

The disrupte is a rather usual instance of a sovereign nation (Iceland) making an application to cancel the supermarket's trademark.

The supermarket says that it's only ever tried to enforce its mark against third parties where the is a risk of confusion. It also had majority Icelandic shareholders and representatives on the board at a time when the original application for the was under opposition.