Idols need protection
31/08/2011

After the recent incident where IDOLS (a registered trade mark of 19 TV Limited) top 10 finalist, Freddie Van’Dango, allegedly got beaten up in a bar fight, it appears that the IDOLS contestants are in need of protection. However, it is not this protection that we are worried about.

With the ever increasing popularity of the IDOLS competition, most of the top 10 finalists have already made a name for themselves in the entertainment industry. Doing well in the IDOLS competition is a good stepping stone for artists, some of which become instant celebrities. The names of these artists become precious commodities and need to be protected against opportunistic third parties wishing to exploit them. Therefore, if IDOLS contestants, or other artists for that matter, are serious about pursuing a career in the entertainment industry, it is highly recommended that they consider filing their own names as trade marks. THE GRAEME WATKINS PROJECT and ELVIS BLUE are prime examples of trade marks made well-known by the IDOLS contestants Graeme Watkins and Jan Hoogendyk (better known as Elvis Blue). I hope that they are protected.

There are various other forms of intellectual property protection that an artist should be aware of, including the copyright in music, musical lyrics, sound recordings, performance rights etc. If you are involved in the entertainment industry and would like to protect and understand your intellectual property rights, please contact any of the trade mark attorneys in our Media and Entertainment Law Group.

See: Media and Entertainment Law
Phillip Haupt
Trade Mark Attorney
phillip-h@adamsadams.co.za