Monster Energy drink has filed trademark complains against Pokemon and Monster Hunter over the use of the word “Monster”. The JPO has routinely denied them but they continue to file complaints. It would seem that Monster Energy is a trademark troll.
I think it is crazy to filed trademark claims for a word like monster. I remember a few years ago when Orange came to the country and filed claims against companies with orange in their name. A computer shop had to change their name. That sort of bullying by large companies should be unacceptable.
I used to like Monster drinks but I will never buy another one. I don’t normally care about things like this but they are really being dicks about it and trying to bully anyone using the word monster. How would anyone ever confuse monster energy with monster hunter?
They are. It’s utterly ridiculous. I have no idea how they still hold such a large market share. Or why the stupid US system allows them to continue to do it.
By 2019, the company has initiated over a thousand trademark cases that have been reviewed by the US court system or US Patent and Trademark Office’s (USPTO) Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, making them a poster child for “trademark bullying” which the USPTO defines as "a trademark owner that uses its trademark rights to harass and intimidate another business beyond what the law might be reasonably interpreted to allow.
They don’t expect to win all the claims, but they bully many of the other organisations into changing or bankrupting themselves. To what end, I don’t know. Like @Wlad, they sure as shit ain’t doing anything to convince me to start drinking their products. On the contrary, I too go out of my way to avoid them.
How long before they start going after users of other words in their product range: “there are 34 different drinks under the Monster brand in North America, including its core Monster Energy line, Java Monster, Zero Ultra, Juice, Maxx, Hydro, HydroSport, Extra Strength, Dragon Tea, Muscle, Import, and Rehab.”
It’s not just the Pokemon and Monster Hunter nonsense at the moment. They’re also currently suing the developer of horror game Dark Deception: Monsters and Mortals.
Monster Energy is suing indie horror developer Glowstick Entertainment for their game Dark Deception: Monsters and Mortals. Apparently to Monster, the word “Monster” in the title of the game and their green and black logo make it very confusing because of the similarities between the two. Glowstick Entertainments head creator, Vincent Livings, has decided to fight it in court.
They claim that our game is confusingly similar to their energy drink. Rather than roll over, I’m going to fight them in court.
For a company that likes to target their drinks at gamers, they also like to try to bully & bankrupt game studios with lengthy high dollar litigation.
Dishonest companies like Monster Energy depend on doing their bullying in secret, while presenting a clean image to their base (atheletes & gamers). Showing their true face publicly is the only real way to stop them. https://twitter.com/VincentLivings/status/1641628710519574528
