Quote:
Originally Posted by mileshawk56
I wonder if that is "false news"?? isnt swatch owned by mercedes (or used to be)/ Chris S.
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I think it is true, however, it is blown out of proportion. The costs awarded to Swatch, were £893 towards their legal fees.
Seriously? Reading between the lines, what I reckon happened, Lewis's company were wanting to bring a range of merchandise or create a label around LH. To do this, and to protect the brand, companies have to lodge trademark papers. One of which would have been for watches, I am sure. Swatch would have objected, and arbitration counsel would have looked over the papers and rejected the trademarking.
This trademarking would only apply to products that could be confused with something else. LH could released quite safely, a range of trousers for instance with the Hamilton name. If they completed their paperwork correctly, an individual could not then design/create a pair of trousers and label them Hamilton.
He could also trademark his name for use on a car. So any manufacturer, or a new manufacturer started by James Hamilton, could not come along and produce a car with that name. Look up the car Ford T5
. However, if LH did not produce a car, and James Hamilton did, James Hamilton would have a strong argument for his case.
If James Hamilton created a PC and called it the Hamilton, he could do this, providing LH had not trademarked the name for use on a PC or another electronic product that could be construed by the public as a computer.
A recent case from a couple of years ago I think demonstrates it well.
Singhsburys. A corner supermarket copying the Sainsburys style of logo, could be misconstrued.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mileshawk56
isnt swatch owned by mercedes (or used to be)/ Chris S.
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no, between them, they designed the Smart range of cars (Swatch Mercedes ART
, or something like that) . Not sure what the standing is now - I had thought Mercedes took control over the automotive section around the time the For Four was released, but I may be wrong on that.
I would bet that LH would have been unaware of all of this, and his company's lawyers were simply conducting a paperwork exercise, and it has not gone beyond the first stages. It was not a massive court case or a case of a big conglomerate trying to crush a small fish. So more like a tabloid trying to sensationalise a story.
And no, I cannot stand Lewis Hamilton. He deserved to win the championship this year, and his capability on a race weekend is currently without peer - no other driver has the equipment and ability to take a fight to him, Bottas does, but not the ability since he will be hamstrung by Mercedes. I would question his ability to develop the car. (question his claim of Britishness too, but that is another matter lol). He is a wannabe american, and an Instadreamer.