SM
Arsenal vs. Newcastle: 18 hrs 46 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews

Liverpool fail with attempt to trademark city's name

:Headline: Liverpool fail with attempt to trademark city's name: ID:372901: from db_amp
The Reds had been looking to protect the word 'Liverpool' when used in the context of football products and services.

Liverpool Football Club's controversial bid to trademark the word 'Liverpool' has been rejected by the government's Intellectual Property Office.

The Premier League club insisted their sole aim had been to protect themselves against mass-produced Liverpool FC merchandise and had hoped to trademark the city's name when used in the context of football products and services.

But, after accepting the IPO's decision, the club's chief executive Peter Moore admitted they had underestimated the level of opposition from independent traders within the city, plus local football clubs and Liverpool City Council.

The club said in a statement: "Liverpool Football Club can confirm its application to trademark the word 'Liverpool' in the context of football products and services has been unsuccessful.

"The club accepts the decision that has been taken by the Intellectual Property Office, due primarily to what the official judgement cites as 'the geographical significance' of Liverpool as a city in comparison to place names that have been trademarked by other football clubs in the UK.

"We will, however, continue to aggressively pursue those large-scale operations which seek to illegally exploit our intellectual property and would urge the relevant authorities to take decisive action against such criminal activity wherever it exists."

Moore said the club's intentions had been sincere but they had misunderstood the implications the trademarking would have had on the local community.

Liverpool chief executive Peter Moore, right, insisted the club had acted in good faith (Steven Paston/PA)

"We underestimated the reaction to it," Moore told the Liverpool Echo. "We had, in very good faith, looked at what we were seeing on a global basis and particularly stuff that was coming into the UK.

"We felt obliged to protect the football club and had looked at other similar situations for clubs that had trademarked their place names in a football context, there are numerous examples.

"We felt that on behalf of the club we needed to do that, but I think it's fair to say that we underestimated the emotional reaction to it and that's our bad."

Moore said the club had met with local businesses to explain their intentions.

"There was no deliberate action to slip it through," he added. "We filed and got on with our business and obviously as things unfolded the reaction was pretty quick and we immediately engaged with the independent retailers and the local football clubs and met with them.

"(We) reassured them that this was not aimed at them and offered them legal protections for if we had been successful."

Liverpool mayor Joe Anderson tweeted: "LFC is a global brand and plays a big part in showcasing our city across the world.

"We have a strong relationship with Peter and his team and the club's importance to the future of this city is without question.

"We will always work together for the people of Liverpool."

amp_article__372901 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2019-09-26 12:55:25:
html db last update - 2019-09-26 12:55:25 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html

Click here for more stories about Liverpool

Share this article now:
Read more about Liverpool Off The Pitch
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool19144147192846
2Arsenal20117239182140
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest20124429191040
4Chelsea20106439241536
5Newcastle UnitedNewcastle20105534221235
6Manchester CityMan City2010463627934
7Bournemouth209653023733
8Aston Villa209563032-232
9Fulham207943027330
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton2061043029128
11Brentford208393835327
12Tottenham HotspurSpurs20731042301224
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd206592328-523
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham206592439-1523
15Crystal Palace204972128-721
16Everton193881525-1017
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves2044123145-1416
18Ipswich TownIpswich2037102035-1516
19Leicester CityLeicester2035122344-2114
20Southampton2013161244-326
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .