Muscle Flex Inc. announced today that it will be pursuing all infringement damages against the World Wrestling Entertainment for its unauthorized use of “Raw” in Canada. Using “Raw” for more than a decade without permission, Muscle Flex has accumulated significant evidence to prove that the WWE procured the sale and distribution of “Raw” labeled products that infringed on the “In the Raw®” wares and services. Approximately seven years ago, a Cease and Desist order was issued but was ignored by the WWE as they continued to sell “Raw” branded merchandise in Canada knowing that ‘In the Raw’ was a registered trademark.
In a press release dated July 20, 2009, Muscle Flex Inc. disclosed that it was in possession of WWE “Raw” labeled items that it believes directly infringe on its ‘In the Raw’ trademark. These items include: various CDs, VHS tapes and a number of apparel items. In WWE’s most recent reported financial quarter, combined sales of WWE’s consumer products and digital media business segments generated $40 million in global revenues. In previous quarters, these numbers were even higher.
The multi-year dispute between Muscle Flex’s “In the Raw” and WWE’s “Raw” trademark concluded in April of this year when Muscle Flex successfully defended its “In the Raw®” trademark against WWE “Raw” trademark in a final Federal Court appeal by the WWE. June of last year, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) Opposition Board issued its final decision with respect to the WWE Canadian trademark application for “RAW.” The ruling confirmed that certain wares listed in the RAW trademark application 1,153,018 were confusingly similar and lacked distinctiveness from the “In the Raw®” registered trademark.
“If someone steals your car and decides to drive it for 15 years knowing it was yours, how would you react?” commented Danny Alex, CEO of Muscle Flex Inc. “Now that the appeal process has concluded, Muscle Flex has begun the process to fully monetize all elements of its ‘In the Raw’ trademark including all infringement and potential damages caused by the WWE in its unauthorized use of ‘Raw’ in Canada. This has been a very long process and I fully intend to bring full and complete restitution to Muscle Flex shareholders… full stop.”
Danny Alex added, “We are measuring the specific potential damages the WWE has caused over the years and the dilution of our ‘In the Raw’ brand in Canada as a result of WWE’s infringement. In 2002, we issued a Cease and Desist order that was ignored by the WWE as they continued to sell ‘Raw’ branded merchandise, and continue to do so in Canada, knowing that ‘In the Raw’ was and is a registered trademark in Canada and has been for many years prior.”
According to the press release, Muscle Flex Inc. is currently developing its first generation of “In the Raw” logo designs that will appear on all branded merchandise. It is expected that details of the Muscle Flex ‘In the Raw’ brand will be released shortly.
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