Hi everyone, I recently came across an interesting Forbes article about Sweden’s efforts to trademark its name, making it the first country in the world to apply to do so. As the article notes, it’s unclear whether this application is a marketing move or an initiative by Visit Sweden (the country’s tourism board) “to protect its name from international duplicates that might confuse unsuspecting travelers who want to experience the original Sweden.” Link to article: https://www.forbes.com/sites/duncanmadden/2024/11/15/sweden-is-trying-to-trademark-its-name-heres-why/
Note: for the Canadian context, see section 12(1)(b) of the Trademarks Act and this blog post: https://www.smartbiggar.ca/insights/publication/place-names-not-registrable-trademarks-in-canada-new-case-maps-out-old-territory
Copyright & Social Media
Communications Law
Interesting move by Sweden, thanks for sharing! I don’t really buy their justification as preventing confusion from unsuspecting travellers. I would guess that the amount of people that accidentally travel to Sweden, Maine when their intention was to travel to Sweden the country is extremely low. And I don’t think that other places around the world named Sweden erode the “goodwill” associated with Sweden the country.