Candy Crush Saga dev trademarks the word 'candy'
King, developer and publisher of Candy Crush Saga, has managed to trademark the word "candy" when pertaining to video games. Ever since King got its hands on the commonly-used word, it has sent notices to Apple regarding multiple games that use the word "candy" in their title.
The Candy Crush dev argues that games that use Candy in their title can increase "the likelihood of confusion" in games like All Candy Casino Slots. However, developer Benny Hsu says that the claim is "ridiculous."
VentureBeat asked Martin Schwimmer of The Trademark Blog about how such a term could be trademarked. It's all about how strong a connection is to a service. "Think of Apple, for example. Nobody is going to expect the electronics giant to lay claim over the fruit, but if someone were to try to market an electronic device under that name, you’d better believe their lawyers would swoop in," the site explained. Arguably, Candy Crush Saga is so ubiquitous, that King can own the term "candy" when it pertains to games.
Of course, with a game as popular as Candy Crush Saga, it's likely that there are legitimate copycats trying to capitalize on the success of King's game. However, there will likely be other games caught in the crossfire. The best course of action for affected devs is to fight back in court. However, that's not a realistic option for many. Hsu plans on changing the name because "myself and other indie developers don't have the money or resources to fight back."
Source: http://www.shacknews.com/article/82728/candy-crush-saga-dev-trademarks-the-word-candy
King, developer and publisher of Candy Crush Saga, has managed to trademark the word "candy" when pertaining to video games. Ever since King got its hands on the commonly-used word, it has sent notices to Apple regarding multiple games that use the word "candy" in their title.
The Candy Crush dev argues that games that use Candy in their title can increase "the likelihood of confusion" in games like All Candy Casino Slots. However, developer Benny Hsu says that the claim is "ridiculous."
VentureBeat asked Martin Schwimmer of The Trademark Blog about how such a term could be trademarked. It's all about how strong a connection is to a service. "Think of Apple, for example. Nobody is going to expect the electronics giant to lay claim over the fruit, but if someone were to try to market an electronic device under that name, you’d better believe their lawyers would swoop in," the site explained. Arguably, Candy Crush Saga is so ubiquitous, that King can own the term "candy" when it pertains to games.
Of course, with a game as popular as Candy Crush Saga, it's likely that there are legitimate copycats trying to capitalize on the success of King's game. However, there will likely be other games caught in the crossfire. The best course of action for affected devs is to fight back in court. However, that's not a realistic option for many. Hsu plans on changing the name because "myself and other indie developers don't have the money or resources to fight back."
Source: http://www.shacknews.com/article/82728/candy-crush-saga-dev-trademarks-the-word-candy