Source: El País

The sportswear giant Adidas announced that it was going to immediately withdraw the opposition filed last Monday, March 27, with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The purpose of the opposition was to prevent the registration of the Black Lives Matter logo (a design of three parallel yellow stripes), since Adidas considered it as confusingly similar to its own.

It should be noted that this decision was taken after an intense debate on the issue, where Adidas representatives expressed their hope that this action would contribute to progress towards racial equality, since Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation is the main organization of the decentralized movement that emerged a decade ago to denounce police violence inflicted by the state to Afro-descendant communities.

Upon withdrawing the opposition, the German company also said that it was going to continue working to improve the access to economic, educational and inclusive opportunities for people of color around the world, and that it expected to play an active role in addressing the racial issues that faces the world today and that it has pledged to assume its responsibility as an industry leader.

A company spokesperson explained: “We hope this gesture will serve to enhance our global commitment to racial equality and the Black Lives Matter community. We are deeply committed to fighting for the rights of African descent people, so we look forward to receiving everyone’s support as we work together to achieve true equality.”

It is important to note that this is not the first time that Adidas faces legal disputes based on its logo. To provide a few examples, in 2018, the shoe manufacturer received a lawsuit from an American artist claiming that the logo used since 1972 was taken directly from designs created by him. In addition, Adidas had problems related to the use of its logo, with several American universities as well as with other manufacturers and designers.

For the company, it is essential to prevent consumers from confusing Adidas’ distinctive design with the logo of other companies, since a logo can be the clearest and most memorable way of expressing the company’s identity. Therefore, it is necessary to highlight that the legal disputes go beyond self-interest and serve as an example both for the sports industry and for all those intangible brands in general.