Ohio State trademarks "The"

[MrsScrew]

This is insane

'The' Ohio State University Successfully Registers Trademark On Commonly-Used English Word

Getty Image Ohio State saw a big legal win come to fruition on Wednesday. The school received a trademark on the word "The." The approval comes more than

brobible.com

 

[WhiteBus]

This is insane

'The' Ohio State University Successfully Registers Trademark On Commonly-Used English Word

Getty Image Ohio State saw a big legal win come to fruition on Wednesday. The school received a trademark on the word "The." The approval comes more than

brobible.com

Isn't it Thee Ohio State???

 

[RUinPinehurst]

Anyone else had their fill of all things Ohio State?

 

[Knight Shift]

Anyone else had their fill of all things THE Ohio State?

FIFY

 

[Knight Shift]

To avoid having to deal with an expected cease and desist letter from Ohio State, Rutgers has proactively changed branding to Rutgers-State University of New Jersey

 

[anon_ivydyf0amkzay]

Silly poisonous nuts…

 

[iReC89]

"We the people" - second word in the constitution. It's like they trademarked second place.

 

[Doctor Worm]

OSU is not the only university that uses the prefix "The". One off the top of my head is "The George Washington University". I wonder if they plan to enforce the patent?

 

[Knight Shift]

OSU is not the only university that uses the prefix "The". One off the top of my head is "The George Washington University". I wonder if they plan to enforce the patent?

Trademark.
This is an area I work in. Obviously, Ohio State cannot prevent others from using THE together with other words. Also, use of THE is protected for the goods described in their registration. That will not stop jokes and knuckleheads (like me!) from saying other schools cannot use the word "the" at all. It's kind of silly mark, but who knows, maybe their Athletics department may have a branding strategy planned for their new mark.

 

[IMARUFAN]

Are there multiple Ohio State University's that makes them feel a need to say "The"?

They should change their name to "The Pretentious University of Ohio".

 

[iReC89]

Trademark.
This is an area I work in. Obviously, Ohio State cannot prevent others from using THE together with other words. Also, use of THE is protected for the goods described in their registration. That will not stop jokes and knuckleheads (like me!) from saying other schools cannot use the word "the" at all. It's kind of silly mark, but who knows, maybe their Athletics department may have a branding strategy planned for their new mark.

Is it unusual for them to claim a trademark where the “mark consists of standard characters without claim to any particular font style, size or color.” ? That seems to be an overly broad claim on a common word. If they claimed a set of representations of the word in Ohio State colors, font, etc it would make more sense to me. The use of the word itself is a claim of authenticity of the thing that follows, almost like a registered trademark symbol. Is this likely just bluster, and that they will never sue anyone to protect the claim because they would probably lose?

 

[RUforlife]

As a result of this action, I am now placing them on upset alert for our next game.

 

[Knight Shift]

Is it unusual for them to claim a trademark where the “mark consists of standard characters without claim to any particular font style, size or color.” ? That seems to be an overly broad claim on a common word. If they claimed a set of representations of the word in Ohio State colors, font, etc it would make more sense to me. The use of the word itself is a claim of authenticity of the thing that follows, almost like a registered trademark symbol. Is this likely just bluster, and that they will never sue anyone to protect the claim because they would probably lose?

It is not unusual at all. Our first advice (when it fits and the client has a low budget) is to obtain the word mark first. Logos/colors/etc tend to change over time, especially for newer marks and startup businesses. It would not surprise me if they have applied for/received marks for stylized letters, colors, etc. It is part of building a brand. I jokingly referred to Rutgers changing their "name" above. However, Ohio State cannot stop others from common use of the word "THE" such as "The State University of New Jersey."

 

[Knight Shift]

Ohio State also owns four trademarks for the letter "O", but these are in stylized form, not the letter itself:

 

[Rufaninga]

Pronounced tha Ohio State University

 

[AreYouNUTS]

OSU is not the only university that uses the prefix "The". One off the top of my head is "The George Washington University". I wonder if they plan to enforce the patent?

And Utah was "The U" loooooooong before Miami football started using it.

 

[RUaMoose]

“The” is an article as is “a” and “an”

 

[koleszar]

I guess their preferred pronouns are "THE". I will therefore abide by OSU's wish and address every OSU fan as "THE". From what I read ,only they(OSU) can use "The Ohio State" on merchandise and promotions. That's all they own, everyone else can use "the" just not in conjunction with Ohio State.

 

[Knight Shift]

And Utah was "The U" loooooooong before Miami football started using it.

But Ohio State could not get a trademark on da U or "THE U" or the turnover chain!!!

Miami Hurricanes "Da U" 2019 Hype Video​

 

[LotusAggressor]

It's a good thing they added "the" to distinguish themselves from all the other Ohio States in this business. Guess they took a cue from Yngwie J. Malmsteen.

 

[MADHAT1]

Trademark. Rutgers needs to get
"What's A"

 

[yesrutgers01]

Is this a play to go after any high profile HS kid with a 7 figure NIL who says they have committed to "'The" Rutgers University? lol

 

[GoodOl'Rutgers]

"We the people" - second word in the constitution. It's like they trademarked second place.

What do you mean.. "We People"?

I suppose it is better than.. "you people".

 

[RUnTeX]

OSU is not the only university that uses the prefix "The". One off the top of my head is "The George Washington University". I wonder if they plan to enforce the patent?

Many others, but a select few:
The Johns Hopkins University
The Leland Stanford, Jr. University
The College of New Jersey
The New School

Each of the above examples, as well as in the case of those tree nuts out in Ohio, having an article "the" as the first word of any proper name (not necessarily just institutional names) shouldn't be allowed, imo.

 

[MoreCowbellRU]

THE level of stupid in THE world never ceases to amaze me.

 

[yesrutgers01]

THE level of stupid in THE world never ceases to amaze me.

So, if I were to step away as a RU fan...The 'THE' for OSU really is catchy and carried it's own weight.
With that said, how in any world could it get trademarked when it is not used exclusively at OSU.

 

[wicker]

Every state school has The in front of it. Darrell Royal once gave advice to a young coach "Go to a place with the word The in it".

This started on Monday Night Football when Cris Carter used the official name instead of just Ohio State. Over time The became emphasized and here we are

 

[WhiteBus]

The Ohio State University has sent a letter of cease and desist to PGA Tour pro Sahith Theegala requesting him to change his name.

 

[anon_ivydyf0amkzay]

THE level of stupid in THE world never ceases to amaze me.

THE level of stupid in THE world is completely unsurprising to me…it long ago ceased amazing me. What amazes me is when common sense and rational thinking prevail. THAT is amazing! 😉

 

[RU Husky]

The Ohio State University has sent a letter of cease and desist to PGA Tour pro Sahith Theegala requesting him to change his name.

After watching his colossal choke on the 18th hole at The Travelers, he should change more than that.

 

[WhiteBus]

After watching his colossal choke on the 18th hole at The Travelers, he should change more than that.

I wouldn’t call that a choke more like two extremely bad decisions on 18.

 

[yesrutgers01]

But Ohio State could not get a trademark on da U or "THE U" or the turnover chain!!!

Miami Hurricanes "Da U" 2019 Hype Video​

View embedded media

Question for you…how does one trademark “The” does it have to be specifically for another university or sports team to use “The” officially before their name. Or would they have the right to sue a kid if the said I have committed to or I played for “The” State University of Nj

 

[Knight Shift]

Question for you…how does one trademark “The” does it have to be specifically for another university or sports team to use “The” officially before their name. Or would they have the right to sue a kid if the said I have committed to or I played for “The” State University of Nj

Basically, the owner of the mark has to show that the mark "THE" has been used in interstate commerce for the goods and services for which are listed in the trademark registration. In this case, they are limited to clothing in the field of sports and college athletics. No, they cannot prevent another entity such as Rutgers or Texas that has "The" in their name from using "The" in their name. They could try, but the would lose. Their claimed first use is in 2005. Rutgers-The State University of New Jersey has been used longer than that (I think).

 

[yesrutgers01]

Basically, the owner of the mark has to show that the mark "THE" has been used in interstate commerce for the goods and services for which are listed in the trademark registration. In this case, they are limited to clothing in the field of sports and college athletics. No, they cannot prevent another entity such as Rutgers or Texas that has "The" in their name from using "The" in their name. They could try, but the would lose. Their claimed first use is in 2005. Rutgers-The State University of New Jersey has been used longer than that (I think).

Thank you…that is pretty much what I assumed for going through this in something similar but thought your “expert”!knowledge would be useful. The trademark- really isn’t going to change anything but on product and ummmmmm- NIL

 

[Knight Shift]

Thank you…that is pretty much what I assumed for going through this in something similar but thought your “expert”!knowledge would be useful. The trademark- really isn’t going to change anything but on product and ummmmmm- NIL

Other than this board and people who follow Ohio State, how many people are going to recognize some tOSU fan wearing a hat or a shirt that says: THE on it and know what it means? Pretty stupid mark.

tOSU just better not venture into restaurants/food:

 

[RUnTeX]

In a similar context, the names of quite a few countries are stated as the United States of America, or the Republic of Ireland, or the Soviet Union. And "the" is an article that defines the noun (States, Republic, Union). The abbreviation is USA, not TUSA or tUSA, because there's no "The" with a capital T (it's not part of the proper noun) in the actual name.

Articles similarly shouldn't be capitalized for an educational institution, but if they are, they shouldn't be able to trademark the article because there are many others that have already done so as part of their branding, even if it's a grammatical stretch.