Irish mixed martial arts (MMA) star Conor McGregor is fighting a trademark opposition from a Dutch company that claims the athlete’s trademark would cause confusion with its own brand.
McGregor Sports and Entertainment (MSE), which handles the majority of the sports star’s Irish business, filed an EU trademark application at the European Union Intellectual Property Office for his name in 2017.
Lawyers for the Irish athlete have now responded to the opposition, arguing that the 'Conor' element of his mark is sufficient to distinguish it from the Dutch brand.
In an October 25 filing, MSE argued that the Dutch company was seeking a monopoly over the 'McGregor’ surname, which would be "extreme and excessive".
"The registration of a surname alone cannot be given the scope of protection to prevent registration of a trademark consisting of a forename with the same surname," the filing said.
MSE said it was unlikely that consumers would confuse the commercial origin of products sold by the two companies based on them sharing the McGregor name.
Source: Wipr
