Mike Tyson initiates lawsuit against Australian streetwear company, Singh & Singh Law Firm wins trademark suit, and more brought to you by the Trademark Attorneys at BananaIP (BIP) Counsels
INDIAN TRADEMARK UPDATES
Singh & Singh Law Firm Secures Interim Injunction Against Singh + Singh LLP
In a recent decision by the Delhi High Court, Singh & Singh Law Firm received a favourable order, injuncting another law firm, Singh + Singh LLP from using the marks ‘Singh + Singh’, ‘Singh + Singh LLP’, and other similar marks. The Plaintiff, Singh & Singh Law Firm, claimed that the Defendant (Singh + Singh LLP) had previously been operating under the names ‘GSC Law’ and ‘KSK Law’ and under the websites ‘gsclaw.ca’ and ‘kohlilaw.com’ respectively, and had deliberately changed their name to the deceptively similar ‘Singh + Singh LLP’ to encash upon Singh & Singh Law Firm’s long-standing reputation. Although the Defendants claimed that their services were restricted to the region of Ontario, Canada, and would not interfere with Singh & Singh Law Firm’s practice, the Delhi High Court nevertheless injuncted them from using the deceptively similar mark ‘Singh + Singh LLP’ and any other similar marks in connection with rendering of legal services, owing to Singh & Singh’s global reputation earned by providing services to a number of international clients.
Citation: Singh & Singh Law Firm LLP & Anr. vs. Singh + Singh Lawyers LLP & Ors. [CS(Commm) 263/2021]
INTERNATIONAL TRADEMARK UPDATES
Mike Tyson Sues Streetwear Brand
Former World Champion Boxer, Mike Tyson, has initiated a trademark infringement suit in the New South Wales Federal Court in Australia, against streetwear company Culture Kings. Tyson, who internationally trademarked his own name in 2010, has alleged that the clothing brand has infringed upon his trademark rights by selling a range of clothing, printed with his name, likeness, images, and some of his infamous nicknames like ‘Kid Dynamite’ and ‘Iron Mike”. In the lawsuit, Tyson has sought all profits earned from selling the allegedly infringing apparel, as well as an injunction preventing Culture Kings from selling the same.
Disney Faces Infringement Suit Against ‘Star+’ Streaming Platform
Entertainment industry giant, Disney, has found itself embroiled in a trademark infringement suit from American media company Starz, over Dinsey’s upcoming Latin American streaming service ‘Star+’. Starz, who has initiated trademark infringement suits against Disney in Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina, has claimed that Disney’s proposed streaming service is infringing upon its trademark rights over the ‘StarzPlay’ platform, which has been operating in Latin America since 2019. As the two streaming services fall under the same category of ‘general entertainment’, Starz has claimed that there exists a high likelihood of confusion among the consumers.
BRAND LICENSING UPDATES
Kollectico Launches Hendrix Bobblehead
Collectible merchandise manufacturer, Kollectico, has recently penned a deal with Experience & Authentic Hendrix, the licensing wing of Jimi Hendrix’s estate, to launch a limited-edition bobblehead of the music legend. The collectible figurines will feature Jimi Hendrix lighting his guitar on fire, as he famously did at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967. As a further testament to this legendary moment, only 1,967 figures of the bobblehead will be sold worldwide.
Jurassic Park x Unique Vintage
Unique Vintage, a fashion brand specialising in classic and vintage clothing, has recently launched a line of clothing celebrating the “Jurassic Park” film franchise, in association with licensing company Universal Brand Development. The collection will feature designs inspired from the film franchise, printed on a range of scarves, T-shirts, dresses. The Jurassic Park x Unique Vintage Collection is available for sale online at Unique Vintage’s website.
DOMAIN NAME DISPUTE UPDATES
Cryptocurrency Company Defeated in Cybersquatting Dispute
Lukka Inc., a cryptocurrency asset software and data provider, has recently emerged unsuccessful in its cybersquatting dispute against the domain name www.Lukka.com. The crypto company, who was conducting its business under the domain name www.lukka.tech, had initiated the dispute under the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP), claiming trademark rights over the domain name. The UDRP Panel, however, found that the trademark over which Lukka Inc. was seeking to assert its rights belonged to another proprietor, and did not belong to Lukka Inc. Therefore, the complaint by Lukka Inc. was dismissed. The Panel did not inquire into the question of Reverse Domain Name Hijacking.
GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION UPDATES
India Begins Export of Maharashtrian Gholvad Chickoo
The Geographical Indication (“GI”) tagged Gholvad Chickoo, which is endemic to the Plalghar region of Maharashtra, , has recently received a boost in its promotion through export sales. The Gholvad Chickoo, which is famous for its sweet taste, has been sorted and graded by a facility at Tapi Gujarat, and the first consignment of the fruit was exported to the United Kingdom. The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) of India, which has heavily promoted the Gholvad Chickoo, has stated that owing to a dearth of competition in the international market, there exists a good potential for exports of the Gholvad Chickoo.
Authored and compiled by Uma T.S, Shreya Chaddha & Varun Gopalakrishnan
About BananaIP Counsels Trademark Attorneys
The Trademark News Bulletin is brought to you by the Trademark/Copyright, IP Transactional Strategy Divisions of BananaIP Counsels, a Top IP Firm in India. Led by Sanjeeth Hegde, BananaIP Counsels’ trademark attorneys are among the leading experts in the field. If you have any questions, or need any clarifications, please write to contact@bananaip.com with the subject: Trademark News.
The weekly trademark news initiative is a part of their pro bono work and is aimed at spreading trademark awareness. You are free to share the news with appropriate attribution and backlink to the source.
Disclaimer: Kindly note that the news bulletin has been put together from different sources, primary and secondary, and BananaIP’s reporters may not have verified all the news published in the bulletin. You may write to contact@bananaip.com for corrections and take down
