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Fri, 26 Jan 2018
Vice Media Goes After Vice Industry Token, A Porn Crypto-Currency Company, For Trademark
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The last time we checked in with Vice Media it was firing off a cease and desist letter to a tiny little punk band called ViceVersa, demanding that it change its name because Vice Media has a trademark for the word "vice" for several markets. In case you thought that occurrence was a one-off for Vice Media, or the result of an overzealous new hire to the company's legal team, Vice Media is again trademark bullying another comany, Vice Industry Token. VIT is apparently a pornography cryptocurrency company, which is a three-word combination that I bet god herself could never have imagined being uttered. The claim in the C&D notice that VIT got is, of course, that Vice Media has a "vice" trademark and that this use infringes upon it.Vice Media sent a cease-and-desist letter to the digital upstart in November, alleging its "Vice Industry Token" trademark infringes on its rights to "Vice," according to a complaint filed Friday in California federal court. As noted, VIT is going to court to declare its use of the word "vice" non-infringing. The complaint as filed does not offer up the reasoning VIT has for its use to not be infringing, but it's fairly easy to guess. Vice Media is a major media company playing in a variety of markets, from magazines to music and journalism. It is not, however, the following:VIT offers its proprietary cryptocurrency and also operates an adult entertainment platform, which, according to the complaint, are together designed to "change the nature and monetization of pornography." There is simply nothing between the two entities that represents a competitive situation. Given that, I have to expect that the court will side with VIT, which was quite smart in seeking this declaratory judgement. What that will not answer, though, is why Vice Media ever thought any of this was necessary to begin with.
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posted at: 12:00am on 26-Jan-2018
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