Californians who are fans of Kid Rock might be interested to learn that the singer is being sued for using the moniker “Greatest Show on Earth” for his upcoming tour. Feld Entertainment, which owns the trademark to the tagline, recently filed a lawsuit against the singer in Florida.
Feld Entertainment owns the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. In May of 2017, Feld Entertainment ended the circus’s tours, but it retained all of its intellectual property. The phrase has long been trademarked, and Kid Rock reportedly did not receive permission from the company to use it.
In its complaint, Feld Entertainment alleges that Kid Rock did not obtain its permission to use the phrase for his “Greatest Show on Earth” tour that is scheduled to begin in 2018. A spokesperson for Feld Entertainment said that while it has licensed others to use the phrase, the company was never contacted by Kid Rock to ask for rights. Kid Rock has not commented on the lawsuit.
Businesses often aggressively defend their intellectual property against infringement by other businesses or individuals. When property is infringed upon by others, businesses may suffer financial losses along with harm to their reputations. Businesses that believe that others are using their trademarks or copyrights might want to talk to intellectual property lawyers. The attorneys may secure injunctions against the infringing parties to prevent them from continuing to use the property. They may also seek to recover damages so that their clients can be fairly compensated for all of the losses that their businesses have suffered as a result of the trademark or copyright infringement.