You might think that the term "Hanshin Victory" is a prediction of success by the Hanshin Tigers in the Japanese baseball league. But in fact is a legal challenge to the team rather than a desirable outcome of their winning ways.
In fact, the term "Hanshin Yusho" (Hanshin Victory) is actually a trademark registered by a man in Chiba back in February 2002. Apparently the man wanted to use licence the term for use on clothing, toys, goods, etc. The net result is that the Tigers can't use the term unless they also take out a licence from the current owner.
Actually, it must have been somewhat shocking to the Hanshin Tigers management when they found out that their own application was rejected on the grounds that the "same logo has been already filed." It seems that the Japanese Patent office has a trademark system similar to that used for Web domains, which is "First come, first served." So, even if you don't actually use the term or logo, you can still own and control it.
Although the Chiba man's claim is that "Hanshin" simply means the Hanshin region, which is the area around Osaka and Kobe, and "Yusho" simply means victory -- even to the most uninformed person, it is obvious that he is trying cash in on the baseball team's "Hanshin Yusho". It's a mystery to me why the Japan Patent Office approved this.
From the news I've been hearing, it looks like the Chiba guy will eventually transfer ownership of his trademark to the Tigers, but I wonder how much they'll have to pay for it. Actually, the same guy also filed for trademarks on a number of other terms, including "Kyojin Yusho" (Giants Victory)" and "Anti Kyojin". Such a smart guy...! Reminds me of the old dotcom days!
In fact, the term "Hanshin Yusho" (Hanshin Victory) is actually a trademark registered by a man in Chiba back in February 2002. Apparently the man wanted to use licence the term for use on clothing, toys, goods, etc. The net result is that the Tigers can't use the term unless they also take out a licence from the current owner.
Actually, it must have been somewhat shocking to the Hanshin Tigers management when they found out that their own application was rejected on the grounds that the "same logo has been already filed." It seems that the Japanese Patent office has a trademark system similar to that used for Web domains, which is "First come, first served." So, even if you don't actually use the term or logo, you can still own and control it.
Although the Chiba man's claim is that "Hanshin" simply means the Hanshin region, which is the area around Osaka and Kobe, and "Yusho" simply means victory -- even to the most uninformed person, it is obvious that he is trying cash in on the baseball team's "Hanshin Yusho". It's a mystery to me why the Japan Patent Office approved this.
From the news I've been hearing, it looks like the Chiba guy will eventually transfer ownership of his trademark to the Tigers, but I wonder how much they'll have to pay for it. Actually, the same guy also filed for trademarks on a number of other terms, including "Kyojin Yusho" (Giants Victory)" and "Anti Kyojin". Such a smart guy...! Reminds me of the old dotcom days!
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