- Adidas backs down from its opposition to the use of the Black Lives Matter logo, which it considered similar to its own.
- The company has taken numerous legal actions against other companies for their use of similar three-line logos, calling its trademarked design a “symbol of quality, innovation and performance.”
- However, in this case, it has decided to avoid controversy and break its tradition of defending its brand image at all costs.
Change of plans. Adidas retracts and will not object to the Black Lives Matter movement using a logo that the German brand considers very similar to its own.
Until now, the sportswear giant had denounced the similarity and filed an opposition with the US Trademark Office, which it will withdraw.
The announcement was confirmed by Adidas this Wednesday, March 29.
The company reported that the withdrawal will be carried out immediately, but They did not give details related to the cause that led them to this change of opinion.publish wsj.
The company had filed its opposition to the United States Patent and Trademark Office on Monday, March 27, arguing the decades-long use of a three-line logo on its footwear, apparel, and sporting goods, adding that BLM’s image was ” confusingly similar.”
Adidas legal actions
Adidas is taking legal action against other companies for allegedly using similar three-line logos since time immemorial.
For decades now, the Germany-based company, known for its iconic three-stripe design, has filed numerous lawsuits along these lines, and not just in the United States with the idea of protecting its intellectual property.
Lawsuits have been directed at a wide variety of companies, from Puma and Skechers, even Tesla.
In some cases, Adidas claims that these companies have intentionally copied its trademarked design, while in others, it claims that similar designs may cause confusion among consumers.
According to Adidas, its three-stripe design is a “symbol of quality, innovation and performance” and has become one of the company’s most valuable assets.
One of the most remembered legal battles targeted Marc Jacobs and was finally resolved out of court. In that case, Jacobs had used four stripes on his shoes, which Adidas said was too similar to his own design.
Only since 2008, the sports firm has filed around 95 lawsuits and signed 210 agreements related to its brand.
Adidas and the controversy with Black Lives Matter
In the letter presented last Monday, Adidas said that the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation, the main NGO that was created to denounce police violence, recorded a pattern of three parallel yellow stripes similar to his own.
The German company, which shelved a million-dollar contract with Kanye West for anti-Semitic statements, has now decided to avoid a controversy with Black Lives Matter, thus breaking a tradition of defending its brand image at all costs.
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