Magic Hat Bullying West Sixth

When I first saw the West 6th logo, the first thing I thought of was Magic Hat. Yes, they contain some similarities, but not enough to warrant a lawsuit.

 

I agree John. With the current trends of larger and established breweries sending cease and dissist letters to smaller and unknowing startup breweries over these types of manusha, I easily saw this coming a year ago. I'm surprised that it has taken this long for a law suit to be filed. If I were the owners of West Sixth, I would have immediately shot down the proposed logo design in fear of this exact thing happening. No, the logos are not alike and there's not enough similarities to suggest that a consumer would have confused one with the other. If anything, I'd be pissed if I thought I was buying a West Sixth IPA and learned later that is was the inferior Magic Hat #9 instead.

 

That says a lot of what Magic Hat must think of their customer base if they think that they can't distinguish a nine from a six.

 

While I can see the similarities in the logos discussed here and elsewhere, I agree with BEERchitect - there is not enough here to warrant a lawsuit. It's bollocks, straight and simple. Never liked Magic Hat to begin with, and this gives me ammunition to not like them more.

 

i stole this image from someone on facebook. i think west sixth is in a bad spot on this one; even the font style of the number is too similar.

 

I'm not an intellectual property lawyer, but I did stay in a Holiday Inn last night . . .

 

I could see how a consumer might confuse the brands if he stands on his head in the beer aisle.

 

And is colorblind.

 

here's the thing that concerrns me....west sixth stated that they didn't create this label. I have a feeling whoever created this, from whatever firm they used, got a little lazy. He/she probably did a google search or whatever saw this image and couldn't shake it. Not saying he/she did it on purpose, but it seems to me that there is some definite influence over what ended up being west sixth label.
That being said...only an idiot wouldn't be able to tell the difference between the two.

 

While I am well behind West Sixth on this and have signed the petition, I have to say that their portrayal of the situation in the link above sounds a bit childish. I know they are trying to garner the support of their clientele and come across as the local Everyman, but they really should have chosen their words a little more professionally.

 

It was my understanding that the logo was created by a local artist and friend of the guys at at Sixth. That would be a pretty poor friend to copy or be lazy. The font is not exclusive to Magic Hat and is used in other sources of media. I personally never noticed noticed the similarities and would love to be called as a witness as to why I choose to drink West Sixth and not #9. Certainly has nothing to do with the label.

 

Huge props to Beer Trappe for donating to the legal defense fund. Big props to the guy from Rooster Brew for donating 20 pints to some lucky patrons, and ostensibly donating to the cause. Nice to see the craft beer scene in Lexington has each other's backs.

 

Seems like a good campaign start a sort of "collaboration not litigation" brew.

 

Honestly, I'm under the impression that Magic Hat was in a position where they where they were obligated to send a cease and assist order. Trademarks can be very valuable assets to a company, representing the brands equity and all that comes along with that. Part of being permitted to own a trademark is the enforcement against those who infringe. If a company knowingly permits others to I infringe without taking action, they can lose exclusivity to that mark.

And let's be honest, an company like Coca Cola could never allow another company to sell a product with an upside down Coca Cola logo on their soda, even if it was a different color. Same story here.

The question is not who is bigger of if they knew they were infringing or not. There is no lawsuit here... Simply notice that they are infringing and must take the appropriate actions to address the situation.

All in all, this may appears to have been handled much the way you would expect. Kleenex, Windsurfer, and Xerox all had to do the same for many many years.

 

Just to clarify, it's actually cease and "desist." Not trying to be a smartass, it's a pretty common mistake, but obviously Magic Hat doesn't want West Sixth to "stop and help."

Not taking into consideration the question of levels of communication (or lack thereof) since it's conjecture, look at the claim itself. I think the question is whether the conglomeration of Cerveceria Costa Rica is using the claim of copyright infringement for its intended purpose, to protect Magic Hat's brand image, or to bully less financially stable companies into a quick settlement to boost their own bottom line. The argument whether or not the logos are similar is subjective, but I really don't think that entitles Cerveceria Costa Rica to ALL of West Sixth's profits, part of their suit, since their logo's inception. Incidentally, West Sixth has no profits yet, but I'm a stickler for principle and pushing those you deem inferior deserves a warranted boycott. Any 6 is going to look like a 9 because a 6 is an upside down 9. If they get away with suing a brewery for using a 6, then why can't they sue every brewery with a 6% ABV beer? Or every brewery with a 16 oz. receptacle? Or every beer produced on the 6th of a month? Plain and simple, they aren't infringing (in my opinion, of course) on Magic Hat's logo because the Magic Hat copyright is for a completely different number, and the 6 happens to have vital significance to the brewery in question; West Sixth brewery is in fact located on W. 6th St. in Lexington, KY, so it's relevant in geography and nomenclature.

Speaking of other corporations not letting logo similarities go unchecked, Coca Cola may not care but PepsiCo. may want to take a gander at Magic Hat's Cucmber Hibiscus Ale.

 

Well played.

 

I know it's hard for people to avoid getting emotional about a "David v Goliath" struggle, but if you look at the case dispassionately, it's not hard to see Magic Hat's point.
The first few times I saw the West Sixth logo, I assumed it was a Magic Hat product. Funnily enough, this resulted in me dismissing the beer out of hand, as MH isn't my cup of tea. Perhaps it would behoove both parties to see the change take place?
(It also wouldn't hurt either party's reputation to settle this behind closed doors...like grown-ups)

 

I'm not a trademark lawyer either, but everything about this letter (not a lawsuit) seems pretty standard to me. It's obvious that the logos are somewhat similar (even if only when turned upside down), some of us have admitted that here. So, there it is, it does cause SOME confusion - and that's pretty much all that matters with a trademark... that's what they're there for - to be recognizable and synonymous with a specific product/company...

I never buy Magic Hat beer, because it sucks. I will never boycott them for trying to protect their rights to something they own. I'll use my beer dollars to vote for my palate, not for someone's contrived populist agenda. I think it's pretty crappy to try to use the energy of the whole craft beer movement to demonize another brewer for doing something so basic and within their rights. It creates bad energy for the scene or at least uses up some of the positive energy that other craft breweries have been cultivating for so long now. Is it a good thing for the growth of the industry that our craft brewers want to start disregarding established laws and business practices to make it easier on themselves to compete?

With all that said, I would still try West 6ths beer if I had the opportunity to buy it. Better be good though, since I hear it's damn near a W(H)INE!