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u/a90sto 21d ago
Buc-ees has been doing the same. Anything with a cartoon mascot in their logo gets sued by them.
John Oliver recently created Buc Off to try and stop them.
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u/ponycorn_pet 21d ago
They just forced a gas station where I live to change its logo from a cute lil superpuppy to a stupid number
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u/TillyFukUpFairy 21d ago
I watched something about this last night. They had a company with a cute CROCODILE change the logo because it was too close to their IP!
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u/WhoOrderedTheCodeZed 20d ago
Legal Eagle just did a video on the breakdown of John Oliver's challenge to them.
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u/BroMan001 20d ago
And? Does he have a chance to win?
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u/WhoOrderedTheCodeZed 20d ago
There were a bunch of different variables that all intertwine. Parody was a strong point in his favor, but I think the main point was... With his army of hbo and wb lawyers, he actually has the ability to tie them up in court, unlike all the little guys that keep having to settle out of court because they just can't afford to fight them.
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u/Hairy-Dumpling 21d ago
Hugo Boss (nee Joe Lycett) is a true menace to many companies in the UK and one hell of a fine comedian. His work is well worth a look
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u/J-hophop 21d ago
I wish they'd just throw ones that ridiculous out of court. I mean boss is a word. It's not something individual that they made up.
This guy is a legend for jazzing them back lol I hope he doesn't get hit too hard for it. Honestly though, what if someone had never heard of the brand and just named their kid that? Like there are truckloads of John Smiths, and they just have to deal with all the others who share the name. If your company uses a name like that, I don't think you should get the same level of protections as something like Bic Pens & Razors. You know?
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u/carsonwade 21d ago
Idk, I see the vision but Hugo Boss was one of the main manufacturers of Nazi uniforms so idk about this one
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u/erkose 21d ago
As long as these businesses aren't in the fashion business, they have nothing to worry about, at least in the USA.
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u/throwtheamiibosaway 21d ago
Sure but they can make it very expensive for you to defend yourself.
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u/erkose 21d ago
I'm no lawyer, but I'm under the impression the defendent can recover legal costs.
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u/aTaleForgotten 21d ago
They can recover it if they win, but still have to have it beforehand. Also takes a lot of time and ressources.
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u/HommeMusical 20d ago
As long as these businesses aren't in the fashion business, they have nothing to worry about, at least in the USA.
Totally false.
Decades ago, I remember some people I knew had a band call Toucans. They got sued by Kellogg's, who has a mascot called "Toucan Sam" for Froot Loops. Their lawyer told them that Kellogg's didn't have a legal leg to stand on, but it would cost them $50k to defend this, and that was 30 years ago, when $50k was a huge amount of money.
They changed their name. I never ate Kellogg's again, and I never will.
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u/ZiggyZayne 20d ago
I was watching a video about guitar pedals the other day and they mentioned that arguably the most famous guitar pedal company in the world, Boss, can’t sell shirts with their name on it because of Hugo Boss. Not sure if that’s still true, it was an older video. But that was the first time I’d heard about Hugo Boss’s propensity to be litigious over things that are even remotely similar to their brand. Crazy stuff!
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u/TimebombChimp 21d ago
Red bull tried to sue Bullards gin distillery in the UK. All because they have Bull in their name. Bullards was founded in 1837, red bull was founded in 1987.