A settlement was already reached, and given that the bumblebee film and all related product are still called “bumblebee”, I’d say hasbro “won” if that’s how you want to put it.

And no one person made this decision, it was likely a mandate by hasbro’s legal department in order to not risk losing the trademark for the name bumblebee. If they didn’t defend it, then they’d have no legal standing to do so in the future in other situations.

 

This reminds of the romance author Faleena Hopkins who tried to trademark the word "cocky" and was rightly criticized and mocked for the attempt by peers and readers alike.

Hasbro, DC's Bumblebee is a black woman and your Bumblebee is a giant robot. If you think people are going to confuse the two, that says a whole lot about what you think about your customers. Even near-sighted elderly grandmothers aren't going to confuse the two.

Furthermore, DC's Bumblebee first appeared in 1976 while your Bumblebee first appeared in 1984.

This is idiotic, this is petty and you deserve to be thoroughly mocked for even trying to do this.

 

1) They have to challenge just to protect their brand because if they don't, it leaves them open to other more serious IP problems down the line.

2) Introduced in 76 but literally barely used until recently while Bumblebee has been in use the entire time Hasbro's had him, heavily at that.

3) Confusing the two. You'd be seriously surprised how often parents incorrectly buy something in a rush because they weren't paying attention. Have you never seen a kid open his present and he asks,"What is this?" only to have the parent reply,"It's Bumblebee."

"No mom, it's not. He doesn't turn into a car."

"Oh, well I thought it was a human character from the movie, not her *actual* name."

 

In related news, Hasbro sues itself over use of the term Nerf Blasters because they thought that consumers would confuse the foam dart guns with the Autobot boombox.

 

I'm consistently amazed at the number of people here that erroneously think Hasbro is being petty, silly, or just plain stupid for filing this suit, and/or thinks they should lose.
The complete ignorance of trademark law is probably something you should work on, rather than broadcast it to everyone here. The fact that numerous people have come into this thread and explained why Hasbro needed to file this suit, and will likely win (or already have been considered to do so) only makes it that much more amazing.

 

I wouldn't be, it's common for some folks to believe they know everything about everything, especially something that's actually a fair bit more complicated than they realize like trademark laws.

Anyway, Hasbro filed a lawsuit, and then DC and Hasbro settled out of court. And now it's over. Happens all the time in the legal and corporate world, and if it weren't about Bumblebee no one here would have ever known or cared that it happened.

 

And I'm amazed by the people who continue to try to rationalize it by erroneously thinking these are competing products.

 

Ace Ventura says hi.

 

For the 10th or 11th time it DOES NOT MATTER if they are competing products. It MATTERS that it’s a toy named bumblebee, if it was a car or an electronic device, or a fracking can of tuna it would not matter. The fact that it is a toy (competing or not) means that hasbro is legally required to file a lawsuit or risk losing the trademark on the name.

 

They ARE competing products, as they are both toys called "Bumblebee."
It does not matter that neither you or I would mistake them for one another.

 

It also does not matter who used it "first", as this is trademark law, not copyright law. In trademark law, consistent use is a deciding factor, not "earliest use". Use it or lose it, basically.

And Hasbro already lost "Bumblebee" once. And people accused them of not properly taking care of their trademark back then. Now Hasbro is properly taking care of its trademark, that's not right either.

 

Hasbro has got away with Marvel's *characters name* on a bunch of MU and ML releases. Like Death's head, Beast, Wrecker, Sandman, and Hawkeye. No reason DC's Bumble Bee.

 

It works on words that are not only common, but have no one else known to claim them. It think that’s the important difference.