IP plays an extremely significant role in the world of toys, as
a number of news reports have made very clear.
We've recently heard that a trade mark dispute involving
Hasbro and DC Comics has been settled in a New York court. In this
case, Hasbro, the owner of a trade mark registration for Bumblebee
(the name of a Transformers character), had sued DC Comics
for trade mark infringement as a result of that company's use
of the name Bumblebee for a teenage girl superhero.
In another recent case in New York (one that didn't directly
involve toys, but certainly did involve the little people for whom
toys are made), Disney failed to get summary judgment against a
business that livens up children's parties by sending out
individuals who go under the names "the Princess" and
"Big Hairy Guy", and who are apparently based on the
Disney characters Leia and Chewbacca. The judge said that confusion
was unlikely, making the point that the companies compete in very
different
