Intellectual Property Law

STL on Infringement Safari: China, Part 3

By Michael Atkins

Hey, they keep me entertained, but enough’s enough.

So here’s the final installment of STL’s “infringement safari” from my trip to China. (Catch up with Part 1 and Part 2)

Today’s theme is coffee.

Here’s the logo from Seattle’s Tully’s Coffee and an admirer from Beijing:

Seattle’s Tully’s Coffee; Beijing’s Tully Coffee

Ok, law school exam time. Is it trademark infringement if a real company adopts a fictional trademark?

Here’s a Beijing mall coffee shop that’s branded itself as “Central Perk” from the late, occasionally-great, sitcom “Friends.”

This isn’t the cafe from “Friends,” but does it infringe?

So where will the next infringement safari take place? Istanbul? New Delhi? Hanoi? Tacoma?

Figuring that out’s half the fun.

Full post as published by Seattle Trademark Lawyer on October 28, 2010 (boomark / email).