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Iron Maiden, a heavy metal band based in the UK is suing 3D Realms Entertainment over a trademark infringement. Formed in 1975, Iron Maiden has over 15 studio albums and sold over 90 million records. The world-renowned band has hundreds of accolades, awards, and nominations. The “Ion Maiden” video game was released in 2018 by 3D Realms, a Danish company. The band filed the lawsuit on May 28, 2019 in a California federal court, seeking damages for $2 million!
Why is this a big deal?
Iron Maiden owns the “IRON MAIDEN” trademark and has used the mark since 1980 for various goods. They are bringing the action against Ion Maiden, for using a “confusingly similar” version of their trademark without authorization, in an attempt to take advantage of Iron Maiden’s worldwide recognition, to sell Ion Maiden products. Not only are the names strikingly similar, the Ion Maiden’s video game logo contains a skull similar to the band’s video game, “Legacy of the Beast” as well. The band released their video game, “Legacy of the Beast” in July 2016. Iron Maiden alleges that the similarity creates a likelihood of confusion among customers, leading them to believe Iron Maiden is affiliated with Ion Maiden. Iron Maiden argues there has already been numerous instances of actual confusion.
This appears to be a trending dispute between rock bands who find themselves associated with products that are similar to their names. Guns N’ Roses also recently sued a Colorado brewery over the beer name Guns ‘N’ Rosé. Who wouldn’t be confused by that? Companies should beware of choosing names that are inspired by well-known trademarked names, the association may sound appealing, but the consequences are costly.
Written by: Sharrissa Stratton
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