Daring to prefix an organization or perhaps a pop group’s title with “straightforward” might land you in authorized sizzling water, because the founding father of British airline easyJet relentlessly tackles alleged trademark breaches.
Greek-Cypriot tycoon Stelios Haji-Ioannou, whose easyGroup nonetheless has hyperlinks with the provider, has got down to defend the “straightforward” model by threatening court docket motion in opposition to anybody deemed to be benefiting from the title.
A proper grievance made by the person merely often called Stelios not too long ago pressured British indie pop band Straightforward Life, which additionally adorned posters with an plane displaying a likeness to an easyJet airplane, into altering its title. It selected Laborious Life.
EasyGroup owns the licenses to a number of entities with the “straightforward” title. The pop band took to social media when EasyJet was suing it, saying it didn’t have the funds to defend itself in what may very well be a prolonged authorized row.
To make certain, the airline group solely filed its trademark utility for the “Easylife” title in 2020—a number of years after the band was based. Nonetheless, easyGroup has sought to guard the “straightforward” prefix because it owns many companies with related names resembling easyCinema and easyBooking.
‘Straightforward come, straightforward go’
“The issue with small model thieves if they’re left unchecked is that they change into worthwhile they usually develop,” an easyGroup spokesman informed AFP in relation to quite a few ongoing lawsuits.
“Most of those circumstances by no means come to open court docket because the model thieves realise that they’re within the improper and make modifications to the satisfaction of easyGroup,” he added.
Laborious Life nonetheless provides a nod to its previous, with the band’s account on X carrying the title message “straightforward come, straightforward go”.
Forward of releasing a brand new tune in June it wrote on the social platform: “Protected to say the final 9 months haven’t been straightforward.”
EasyGroup and Stelios, who lives in Monaco, insist that their actions are within the curiosity of the buyer, to keep away from confusion and protect the corporate’s picture.
The spokesman added that “most of easyGroup’s earnings” go into the Stelios Philanthropic Basis.
The easyGroup mannequin sees it obtain royalties from licensing its model to 3rd events. It receives, for instance, 0.25 % of easyJet’s income, whereas the Haji-Ioannou household nonetheless owns 15 % of the provider.
Round 1,200 official “straightforward” manufacturers exist, from playing enterprise easyBet to easyGym, easyHotel and courting website easyWoo—a lot of which exhibit the identical typeface and orange/white color scheme.
‘David and Goliath’
Unofficial “straightforward” firms contacted by AFP cited colossal authorized charges as the explanation for backing down and altering their names when pursued by easyGroup.
“As a small enterprise it was extremely onerous to maintain up financially with solicitor charges so for me I’m comfortable to go away this behind me,” mentioned Jozsef Spekker, proprietor of Stoke Jetwash.
The driveway-cleaning enterprise was often called Straightforward Jetwash till August.
The brand new title takes the title of the town the place his small enterprise is predicated in central England.
An mental property legislation specialist on the London College of Economics, Luke McDonagh, described such circumstances as “David and Goliath battles”.
“Some individuals name this trademark bullying, the place basically Goliath takes a case in opposition to a David, a small firm that basically has no sources and can’t battle again,” he informed AFP.
“It’s not simply easyGroup, it will be improper to single them out, numerous massive firms do that,” he added, citing Apple, L’Oreal and tv broadcaster Sky as prime examples.
McDonagh believes easyGroup, whose branding extends to cruise firm easyBoat and household-products agency easyCleaning, “has been going too far in taking so many circumstances in opposition to these small entities”.
“The aim of trademark legislation is to not give a vast monopoly on a phrase. It is likely to be completely different if it was a completely made-up phrase, however ‘straightforward’ is such a standard phrase within the English language that different firms want to have the ability to use it in an affordable approach.”
EasyGroup has loved “many authorized (trademark) victories over time”, the spokesman mentioned.
Even when it could not all the time look like a battle between equals, Stelios has misplaced a number of challenges over the model’s title. In 2018, as an example, the group misplaced a case in opposition to automotive seller Arnold Clark over the title of its fee system, Straightforward Pay.
Earlier this month, Easyfundraising, an almost 20-year-old Staffordshire-based firm, received a authorized battle in opposition to EasyGroup alongside related traces.
The Excessive Courtroom in London dominated in favour of on-line platform easyfundraising, which is hoping to get well round £1.0 million ($1.3 million) in authorized charges, regardless of an enchantment hanging over the corporate.
“It’s telling that EasyGroup weren’t in a position to produce a single piece of proof displaying any buyer confusion has ever existed,” Easyfundraising’s CEO James Moir informed the BBC. Stelios, however, mentioned he would enchantment the choice as he was “upset” by it.
“It’s like a warfare of attrition, they usually simply hope that finally firms give in, as a result of it’s too lengthy, it’s an excessive amount of trouble, it’s too costly,” Moir informed AFP.