The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit last week ruled that well-known sports drink maker Gatorade’s use of the slogan, ““Gatorade The Sports Fuel Company” beginning in 2016 amounted to fair use under the Lanham Act and therefore did not violate SportFuel Inc.’s trademark rights. SportFuel is a nutrition and wellness consulting company based in Chicago that holds two registered trademarks for “SportFuel.” Around 2013, Gatorade, a subsidiary of PepsiCo., began a rebranding effort that included public descriptions of its products as “sports fuels”. Gatorade registered a trademark for “Gatorade The Sports Fuel Company” in 2016 but disclaimed “The Sports Fuel Company” due to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s (USPTO’s) notice that the phrase was descriptive of its products. However, the company continued to use the slogan.
Seventh Circuit Finds Gatorade’s Use of ‘Sports Fuel’ in Its Slogan Constitutes Fair Use
No Comments
Business
- Patents on Transactions Using Cryptocurrency: Square versus PayPal
- Managing the Perils of Public IP Company Ownership
- IPO Top 300, 2020: Slight Decreases in Patent Grants Due to Budgets, Not COVID
- Pardon Me? Levandowski Case Highlights Need for Proactive Approach to Avoid Trade Secret Problems in Hiring
- How Patents Enable Mavericks and Challenge Incumbents
Recent Posts
- NetSoc Appeals to SCOTUS, Claiming Improper Analysis of Social Network Patent Nixed Under 101
- The View from the Court’s 2 Live Crew: Examining the Thomas/Alito Dissent in Google v. Oracle
- Tillis, Michel and Iancu Back Ericsson in Heated International FRAND Dispute with Samsung
- The mRNA IP and Competitive Landscape Through One Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic – Part I
- The Upshot of Google v. Oracle: An Absurd Ruling Will Lead to Absurd Results