Here’s an interesting offline trademark battle between celebs over the word “nude”.
Seems that Designer Stella McCartney, daughter of Paul McCartney just announced that she will be releasing a new perfume StellaNude.
Wife of Bono, leading singer of U2, Ali Hewson, and her business partner Bryan Meehan, have a company called Nude Skincare, which specializes in natural probiotic products.
Hewson suggested naming the line Nude, as it was the reverse of “Edun”, Bono and Hewson’s green clothing line.
So Nude Skincare went off to court in Britain and filed suit, in the Chancery Division in London which deals in infringement and copyright claims
“Nude Skincare is suing for compensation, not because of anything to do with the scent of the perfume but because of branding and the use of the word ‘nude,'” says the NudeSkincare’s rep.
“Stella isn’t likely to make any changes now because the fragrance is coming out in September and nudity is a big part of the perfume’s look, the bottle, for example, is a nude color.” says McCartney’s rep
Still think generic words are not subject to trademark claims?
It’s subject to trademark claim because the word “nude” is not being used in its generic context.
mike you are not an ip lawyer.nudeskincare is a long way from the word nude.stella nude is the other word.which one is on the principal register first..that is the first sign of priority.legal precedent.are they both in the same class? class 3 on the uspto second priority.
each party will have to supply publc surveys to determine public confusion this is not so easy.how will the word be used?newspapers,magazines,tv advertising/ will the advertising cross different mediums?there are 7 steps to establish likilihood of confusion each has to be determined on its own merits.
You can attempt to register just about anything you want. Defending that position in court can be an expensive proposition, especially when you are using a standard english word.
My bet: The attorneys on both sides will bill for many hours, and make thousands of dollars.
Then, the court will smile, laugh….and tell them that neither claim is valid, and dismiss the entire question.
Bruce
You are most likely correct, except that attorney’s fees will go into the tens of thousands and possibly higher
UPDATE
The judge in the UK refused to grant Bono’s company’s request for an injunction which would have prevented the launch of McCartney’s perfume line.
The balance of the case moves forward:
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5goYJQgFYOvSvm92f3B_kKbyUt81wD9A6MG102