Who Owns the Make America Great Again Hats
Need more proof Donald Trump is bringing his business savvy to the campaign trail? He has already trademarked his "Brand America Smashing Once more" slogan.
Yep, Ronald Reagan may have said it first, but Trump is the one asserting his commercial rights to the phrase.
Trump applied for a trademark for "Make America Bully Once more" in November 2012 -- mere days later the last presidential election.
Trademark applications typically take a long time to process. Trump only received the "Make America Great Over again" trademark in July of this twelvemonth.
Hither'southward where information technology gets interesting: The trademark is specifically for "political action committee services." In other words, it doesn't say anything about hats, T-shirts, etc.
Ever since Trump started sporting his scarlet chapeau in early on Baronial with "Make America Great Again," it's become a hot seller online. And not just on Trump'due south website.
Supporters can buy the lid -- in numerous dissimilar colors -- for $25 directly from Trump's campaign merchandise website. Or they can get a ripoff version from thousands of other sellers for as little as $4.99.
Related: Annihilation with Trump name is selling fast
Trump takes legal activeness against illegal sellers
Trump has had enough of the copycats. Now he'south getting his lawyer involved.
One of his first targets is CafePress, a popular website where people tin can print T-shirts, coffee mugs and other garb. The company received a "terminate and desist" letter from Trump'southward lawyer at the terminate of September.
Trump's legal squad made information technology very clear there would be a lawsuit against CafePress unless the site stopped peddling "Make America Great Again" merchandise.
"This isn't about money. This is almost protecting ane'due south brand and trademark," Trump's lawyer Alan Garten told CNNMoney.
CafePress hasn't issued an official response, only it's telling that there used to be hundreds, if not thousands, of items available on CafePress with Trump's motto. Searching the site now for that slogan returns goose egg with that exact phrase.
Trump has repeatedly stressed that he's a billionaire who is self-funding his entrada and doesn't demand outsider's money. Simply he has besides made information technology clear that he knows how to build a make. He'southward made a lot of money licensing the Trump proper noun on everything from hotels to ties.
Now he's ready to do the same with "Make America Dandy Again."
Related: Donald Trump's economy vs. Jeb Bush's: Who wins
Trump applies for another trademark
To clear up any confusion, Trump applied for another trademark on August 13. This one spells out that the trademark covers bumper sticks, T-shirts, tank tops, campaign buttons, caps and hats, baby habiliment, blogs. The list goes on. It could take months, if not years, for that trademark to be approved.
In the meantime, legal experts say Trump may still have a valid case against CafePress and other sellers.
Paul Callan, CNN's legal analyst and a former media police force professor, says Trump'southward lawyers can likely build a solid instance that America at present associates the phrase "Brand America Corking Over again" with Trump, similar to the way people acquaintance "Just Do It" with Nike.
"In the public mind, [Trump] has a legitimate argument that the phrase has a commercial secondary meaning," says Callan.
Related: How many jobs has Donald Trump created?
In that location are yet thousands of copycat hats and shirts
For at present, Trump's lawyer says the campaign will "selectively" enforce trademark rights.
CafePress is inappreciably the only site with copycat Trump gear. There are over 200 items for sale with Trump's campaign slogan on Etsy, (ETSY) over 2,000 on Amazon (AMZN) and over 4,000 on eBay. (EBAY)
When asked for annotate, an Etsy spokeswoman said the visitor "takes intellectual property and copyright concerns very seriously" and that the site "removes items when nosotros accept proper find." Amazon and eBay did not respond to requests for comment.
Trump isn't the first to trademark campaign materials. Obama's entrada applied for trademarks for the rising sun logo, among others.
In this election bicycle, Republican Ben Carson too sent a cease and desist letter to CafePress for alleged violation of trademark and copyright.
The visitor issued a response to Carson: "To borrow from a slogan that is much used in this entrada, it doesn't take a brain surgeon to sympathize how baseless these claims are."
Source: https://money.cnn.com/2015/10/08/investing/donald-trump-make-america-great-again-trademark/
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