On June 19, the court in Bochum, Germany ruled in favor of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce in a trademark infringement lawsuit, according to Yahoo! Finance. The lawsuit involved the unauthorized use of the world famous Hollywood Sign and the Hollywood Walk of Fame, which are both the Chamber’s licensed trademark properties, by Mensing department store in Dorsten, Germany.
Global Icons, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce’s exclusive licensing agent, discovered Mensing’s illegal use of the Chamber’s intellectual property.
“Mensing had created a ‘Hollywood’ themed shop and environment with a large wall dedicated to the iconic Hollywood sign and also recreated over a dozen ‘Walk of Fame’ stars on the store floor, “ said Jeff Lotman, CEO of Global Icons. “We vigorously pursued Mensing and its design agent Schleifenbaum, and the court agreed with our position that the use of the Hollywood sign and Walk of Fame trademarks constituted infringement.”
Prior to the suit, the Chamber and Global Icons offered Mensing and Schleifenbaum the opportunity to license the trademarks in an effort to avoid litigation. However, Mensing and Schleifenbaum rejected the offer, citing the belief that the Chamber and Global Icons had no valid enforceable trademark rights to the Hollywood Sign and that neither the Sign nor the Walk of Fame had global recognition.
“The Court’s determination that these companies violated the Chamber’s rights sends a message that companies outside the U.S. cannot violate our trademark and other rights,” said Hollywood Chamber President & CEO Leron Gubler. “This is the first time in more than 35 years of owning these trademarks we have been forced to take legal action internationally to protect them.”
If you are facing or are thinking about pursuing an intellectual property dispute, our Los Angeles trademark infringement attorney will review your case. For more information, contact our firm today at [number] or by filling out the case review form on this page.
Quick Klein Extra: In 2009, an estimated 71 percent of all trademark applications were filed by residents with their domestic office.
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