Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

posted by martyb on Tuesday June 03 2014, @06:36PM   Printer-friendly

Read the full story on the cbcnews community blog or wired.

U.S. trademark registration 4,473,631 was issued to one Paul Ingrisano, aka "Pi Productions Corp" of New York. In January, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office gave Ingrisano a trademark on the symbol π. pi followed by a period: a design Ingrisano uses on T-shirts sold at some brick-and-mortar stores.

When Ingrisano discovered that California-based print-on-demand outlet Zazzle offered an array of clothing items that featured the symbol pi, he had his attorney send the company a strongly-worded cease-and-desist letter this month demanding their removal.

"This would be like McDonalds claiming the letter M as a trademark," wrote Jez Kemp, whose Zazzle store offers apparel imagining pi dressed in a pirate costume. "The trademark is in the combination of style and symbol, not the symbol itself."

Attorney Millet defends the cease-and-desist letter. He says that to his knowledge none of the designs sold through Zazzle included the exact trademark π. -- pi followed by a period -- but some of them were confusingly similar to his client's design.

In 2011, Ingrisano attempted to trademark "I<3" artnet reports, which was "published for opposition" in June 2013. Reebok's intellectual property watchdogs claimed in a December 14, 2013 "Notice of Opposition" that "I<3" is too close to comfort to its own "I3" trademark.

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
  • (Score: 4, Funny) by jimshatt on Tuesday June 03 2014, @07:14PM

    by jimshatt (978) on Tuesday June 03 2014, @07:14PM (#50744) Journal
    Because PI are his initials. "I3" can of course be explained by Ingrisano's "size" (if you catch my drift).
    Starting Score:    1  point
    Moderation   +2  
       Funny=2, Total=2
    Extra 'Funny' Modifier   0  
    Karma-Bonus Modifier   +1  

    Total Score:   4  
  • (Score: 2) by jimshatt on Tuesday June 03 2014, @07:22PM

    by jimshatt (978) on Tuesday June 03 2014, @07:22PM (#50748) Journal
    Aargh, I should've used preview. I meant "I<3".
  • (Score: 1) by Alfred on Tuesday June 03 2014, @07:23PM

    by Alfred (4006) on Tuesday June 03 2014, @07:23PM (#50749) Journal

    What will this do to Magnum PI?
    I think he had a trademark on some kind of shorts and mustache.

    • (Score: 2) by Tork on Tuesday June 03 2014, @07:34PM

      by Tork (3914) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday June 03 2014, @07:34PM (#50750)
      Nothing. It's not pi it's Magnum P.I., and that trademark has nothing to do with the number.
      --
      🏳️‍🌈 Proud Ally 🏳️‍🌈
      • (Score: 1) by Alfred on Tuesday June 03 2014, @08:07PM

        by Alfred (4006) on Tuesday June 03 2014, @08:07PM (#50759) Journal

        Good. As long as the 'stache is safe
        :-{)