Naked Cowboy’s Suit Against M&M to Proceed

A U.S. District Court judge has decided that The Naked Cowboy (an entertainer known for wandering the New York Times Square area in his undies, hat and boots while playing guitar) can proceed with his claim for trademark infringement against Mars Inc. Earlier this year, The Naked Cowboy sued Mars Inc. over a blue M&M cowboy character it developed. The lawsuit was for $6 Million and alleged trademark infringement and violation of rights of publicity. The U.S. District Court judge tossed the publicity claim but did not dismiss the trademark infringement claim, despite an argument by Mars Inc. that the M&M cowboy is a parody. Of note, this story did not begin with a lawsuit as The Naked Cowboy sent a cease and desist letter first, which Mars Inc. apparently ignored.

Posted on Monday, June 30, 2008 at 01:09PM by

Marcia Sutton in Claim Examples, Intellectual Property, Invasion of Privacy |

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