Adidas asks US to bar Black Lives Matter from using three stripes in trademark

Author: Editors Desk Source: The Guardian

March 28, 2023 at 20:21

The Adidas logo and the BLM Global Network Foundation’s logo. Composite: AP / Black Lives Matter organization

The sportswear company claims the BLM Global Network Foundation’s yellow-stripe design would be confused with its three-stripe logo

Sneaker giant Adidas AG has asked the US trademark office to reject an application for a Black Lives Matter trademark featuring three parallel stripes, arguing it could mislead the public.

Adidas told the office in a Monday filing that Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation Inc’s yellow-stripe design would create confusion with its own famous three-stripe mark. It sought to block the group’s application to use the design on goods that the German sportswear maker also sells, such as shirts, hats and bags.

Adidas declined to comment on the filing. Representatives for the Black Lives Matter group did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.

Adidas said in the filing that it has been using its logo since as early as 1952, and that it has acquired “international fame and tremendous public recognition”.

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