Texas A&M Sues Seattle Seahawks for Infringement upon "12th Man" Trademark
Today Texas A&M filed lawsuit in the 85th District Court of Brazos County for infringement upon their 12th Man trademark. A temporary restraining order that restricts the Seattle Seahawks from usage of the 12th Man trademark was also filed today. "The Seahawks have celebrated their fans as a '12th Man' since the 1980s, when they used to turn the now-demolished Kingdome into one of the NFL's loudest venues. The team retired the No. 12 in 1984. Now, a No. 12 flag waves atop the city's signature Space Needle and the team has raised a '12th Man' banner at their new stadium, Qwest Field. Texas A&M has legal claims to the '12th Man' monik," which has been a school tradition since the 1920s.
At Texas A&M, "the tradition of the Twelfth Man was born on the second of January 1922, when an underdog Aggie team was playing Centre College, the nation's top ranked team at the time. As the hard fought game wore on, the Aggies were forced to dig deep into their limited reserves because of injuries. Coach Dana X. Bible remembered that a former squad member, who was playing basketball at the time, was in the press box helping reporters identify players. His name was E. King Gill. Gill was called from the stands, suited up, and stood ready throughout the rest of the game… which A&M finally won 22-14. When the game ended, E. King Gill was the only man left standing on the sidelines for the Aggies. Gill later said, 'I wish I could say that I went in and ran for the winning touchdown, but I did not. I simply stood by in case my team needed me.'
This gesture was more than enough for the Aggie Team. Although Gill did not play in the game, he had accepted the call to help his team. He came to be known as the 'Twelfth Man' because he stood ready for in case the eleven men on the gridiron needed him. That spirit of readiness for service, desire to support, and enthusiasm helped kindle a flame of devotion among the entire student body; a spirit that has grown vigorously throughout the years. The entire student body at A&M is the Twelfth Man, and they stand during the entire game to show their support. The 12th Man is always in the stands waiting to be called upon if needed."
Texas A&M has registered trademarks twice for "The 12th Man" label in 1990 and 1996 that include entertainment services, 'namely organizing and conducting intercollegiate sporting events,' and products, such as caps, T-shirts, novelty buttons and jewelry.
The Seahawks have been contacted repeatedly since 2004 to stop their use of the 12th Man trademark, but have not responded. In the past the Chicago Bears and Buffalo Bills have used the 12th Man theme, but when made aware of the trademark registrations they stopped. Since the Seahawks have shown no signs of compliance, Texas A&M has chosen to seek legal action.
sources:
1)http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs05/news/story?id=2309668&campaign=rss&source=ESPNHeadlines
2)http://traditions.tamu.edu/traditions/
3)E-mail sent from Steven B. Moore, chief marketing officer and vice president for communications at Texas A&M University to student body and faculty
At Texas A&M, "the tradition of the Twelfth Man was born on the second of January 1922, when an underdog Aggie team was playing Centre College, the nation's top ranked team at the time. As the hard fought game wore on, the Aggies were forced to dig deep into their limited reserves because of injuries. Coach Dana X. Bible remembered that a former squad member, who was playing basketball at the time, was in the press box helping reporters identify players. His name was E. King Gill. Gill was called from the stands, suited up, and stood ready throughout the rest of the game… which A&M finally won 22-14. When the game ended, E. King Gill was the only man left standing on the sidelines for the Aggies. Gill later said, 'I wish I could say that I went in and ran for the winning touchdown, but I did not. I simply stood by in case my team needed me.'
This gesture was more than enough for the Aggie Team. Although Gill did not play in the game, he had accepted the call to help his team. He came to be known as the 'Twelfth Man' because he stood ready for in case the eleven men on the gridiron needed him. That spirit of readiness for service, desire to support, and enthusiasm helped kindle a flame of devotion among the entire student body; a spirit that has grown vigorously throughout the years. The entire student body at A&M is the Twelfth Man, and they stand during the entire game to show their support. The 12th Man is always in the stands waiting to be called upon if needed."
Texas A&M has registered trademarks twice for "The 12th Man" label in 1990 and 1996 that include entertainment services, 'namely organizing and conducting intercollegiate sporting events,' and products, such as caps, T-shirts, novelty buttons and jewelry.
The Seahawks have been contacted repeatedly since 2004 to stop their use of the 12th Man trademark, but have not responded. In the past the Chicago Bears and Buffalo Bills have used the 12th Man theme, but when made aware of the trademark registrations they stopped. Since the Seahawks have shown no signs of compliance, Texas A&M has chosen to seek legal action.
sources:
1)http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/playoffs05/news/story?id=2309668&campaign=rss&source=ESPNHeadlines
2)http://traditions.tamu.edu/traditions/
3)E-mail sent from Steven B. Moore, chief marketing officer and vice president for communications at Texas A&M University to student body and faculty
posted by cpuaggie at 5:10 PM
1 Comments:
OOOOOOOOH! THAT MAKE ME SO MAD!!! CAN'T THOSE SEAHAWKS REFRAIN FROM STEALING OTHER PEOPLE'S SLOGANS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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