Toronto Blue Jays suing Creighton Bluejays to stop using new logo

[BrianLion 1,431]

http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/eye-on-college-basketball/24671240/toronto-blue-jays-are-ticked-want-creighton-bluejays-to-change-their-new-logo

"All goods and services in the class are opposed, namely: Athletic apparel, namely, shirts, pants, jackets, footwear, hats and caps, athletic uniforms," the opposition filing says.

Toronto filed papers on Aug. 11 with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.Read the contention here, which runs down a list of reasons why Toronto believes this blurs their brand too much.

What do you think?

[GFB 1,552]

I can see their beef.

[BayouJim 807]

Creighton did it better.

[MBurmy 991]

There aren't a lot of ways you can draw a serious bluejay head...I expect they're gonna reach an undisclosed settlement out of court.

[j'villejags 1,087]

I can definitely see where the inspiration came from.

EDIT: I should have refreshed my memory before I made this graphic. It'd been a while since I'd seen a blue jay up close. The line across the eyes and the feathers on the top of the head are just features of the bird. Despite that, there are still similarities between the logos and I still wouldn't be surprised if it was used as a reference point.

[TVIXX 236]

Creighton did it better.

yes they did

[MJWalker45 3,597]

This seems to be the equivalent of LSU suing Auburn over their tiger eye logos.

[29texan 637]

Good God, how many teams and schools have a blue jay as a mascot? There's only sooooo many variations of a blue jay's head you can do.

I think Toronto is mad that their logo's execution wasn't as good as Creighton's...

[Soundwave721 25]

Are the Blue Jays gonna sue JG Quintel and Cartoonnetwork?

[Webfooter 856]

Creighton did it better.

yes they did

Agreed. While they could cause some confusion, I think they're distinct enough to differentiate them.

[GFB 1,552]

While many of you think the Creighton version is better (for a university, perhaps, not for baseball) or that the two logos are "different enough," that's not the issue here. The issue is that if you showed the Creighton Blue Jays logo (without the script) to a random person on the street and asked them, "What team is this logo for?" the mass majority of people will respond "Oh, the Toronto Blue Jays" and that's where the lawsuit is coming from. To the average, untrained eye, the two designs are basically depicting the exact same thing in the exact same pose using really similar elements throughout.

[Ice_Cap 15,276]

"Creighton's logo is better" isn't going to stand up in court.

It's also worth noting that trademark laws work in a way to promote these sorts of lawsuits. If you don't defend your trademarks you could lose the right to hold them. So the Blue Jays may simply be taking actions to protect their own trademarks.

They'll still be able to show that they've protected their brand even if they lose.

[Gothamite 16,381]

While many of you think the Creighton version is better (for a university, perhaps, not for baseball) or that the two logos are "different enough," that's not the issue here. The issue is that if you showed the Creighton Blue Jays logo (without the script) to a random person on the street and asked them, "What team is this logo for?" the mass majority of people will respond "Oh, the Toronto Blue Jays" and that's where the lawsuit is coming from. To the average, untrained eye, the two designs are basically depicting the exact same thing in the exact same pose using really similar elements throughout.

Indeed. Remember the University of Southern California getting the trademark cancelled for South Carolina's interlocking "SC" logo, even though it looked almost nothing like theirs.

This isn't a regular lawsuit, where they're necessarily trying to stop Creighton from using their logo. Toronto is required to defend their trademarks against any similar marks in related industries.

[TheOldRoman 1,268]

I think the Blue Jays' version is much, much better, actually. Putting a scowl on a freaking blue jay is wrong (but at least it's not gritting teeth). Toronto's version is better because it doesn't have throw-away colors added just to show shading. It's a profile. It doesn't need shading.

While I could clearly tell these logos apart, there are a whole bunch of similarities, in terms of the general shape, the color layout, the places where the feathers fan out, and so forth. I'm not calling this a straight rip-off, but it sure looks like someone was staring at Toronto's logo and trying to make it just different enough.

[Evil G 99]

I think the Blue Jays' version is much, much better, actually. Putting a scowl on a freaking blue jay is wrong (but at least it's not gritting teeth). Toronto's version is better because it doesn't have throw-away colors added just to show shading. It's a profile. It doesn't need shading.

While I could clearly tell these logos apart, there are a whole bunch of similarities, in terms of the general shape, the color layout, the places where the feathers fan out, and so forth. I'm not calling this a straight rip-off, but it sure looks like someone was staring at Toronto's logo and trying to make it just different enough.

I was going to say this, but you took the words right out of my mouth.

[Shadojoker 1,232]

Creighton did it better.

yes they did

Totally agree. Creighton response?

If Toronto wants to sue then what about all the Teams with Tigers,Cardinals, Bears..etc. whatever they just mad.

[guest23 862]

The biggest differentiation between two is the bright red maple leaf. I think you could make a compelling argument that they are distinct based on that single element. How could a reasonable person mistake Creighton for the Toronto Blue Jays when one logo clearly identifies itself as a distinctly Canadian product while the other does not?

[1clkgtramg 89]

Creighton's logo may be better on a College level, but Toronto wasn't going for the same look Creighton did. They wanted to clean up their original logo and they did just that - very well I might add. Also both Blue Jays logo's where top of CCSL rankings 2 years ago(?)

I still don't see a reason to sue here, both are far different in their execution and both represent different sports (well except the baseball at Creighton) on different levels.

[jayjackson3 157]

The biggest differentiation between two is the bright red maple leaf. I think you could make a compelling argument that they are distinct based on that single element. How could a reasonable person mistake Creighton for the Toronto Blue Jays when one logo clearly identifies itself as a distinctly Canadian product while the other does not?

This is how I feel about it as well. To those saying "Well they look similar because of this and that and whatnot" Of course they do, they are both logos of a Blue Jay side profile. If you are trying to make it look like a Blue Jay, both did a good job but they are both also obviously different. The Maple Leaf 100% separates the two for me.

Creighton is a better logo. It is also going to be used for all the sports other than baseball. This seems so petty on the part of the Toronto team.

[phutmasterflex 942]

Are the Blue Jays gonna sue JG Quintel and Cartoonnetwork?

YEAHUH!