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11 February 2015Trademarks

Red Bull locks horns with ox trademark applicant

There is no difference between an ox and a bull according to energy drink company Red Bull, which has opposed two US trademark applications concerning the term 'ox'.

Austria-based Red Bull has targeted applications by Virginia-based Old Ox Brewery, claiming that customers will be confused between the two companies’ logos and names.

At the US Patent and Trademark Office’s Trademark Trial and Appeal Board, Red Bull opposed an application for a logo of a circle with an ‘X’ in the middle and the words ‘Old Ox Brewery’ underneath. The second opposition concerns an application to protect ‘Old Ox Brewery’ as a word mark.

Red Bull has claimed that its ‘Red Bull’ word mark and its logo featuring two red bulls in front of a yellow background have become “valuable assets”. They identify its energy drinks, as well as clothing, supplements and “various other products”, and distinguish it from the products and services of others, the company said.

In its complaint, Red Bull has taken issue with the trademarks being applied for in class 32, which includes soft drinks and alcoholic drinks.

Red Bull also claimed that most consumers would not be able to tell the difference between an ox and a bull.

“An ‘ox’ and a ‘bull’ both fall within the same class of ‘bovine’ animals and are virtually indistinguishable to most consumers,” Red Bull claimed.

“In addition, an ox is a castrated bull,” it added.

Red Bull added that, based on conversations it has carried out with Graham Burns, chief financial officer at Old Ox Brewery, his company said it intended to use its name and logos on non-alcoholic beverages, including soft drinks.

In its complaint, Redbull added: “Applicant’s marks so resemble opposer Red Bull’s logo and marks as to be likely, when applied to the goods of the application, to cause confusion, mistake or deception.”

Old Ox Brewery did not respond to a request for comment.

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Trademarks
12 February 2015   A US brewery that had two trademark applications incorporating the term ‘ox’ objected to by multinational Red Bull has branded the energy drink maker a “big red bully”.