Using Sports KIts Teams Colours on a product.

[bigadri]

Jurisdiction

Other

Hi Forum. I have a toy business and have created a kids wooden decorative product that would principly be displayed in kids rooms. The product can be produced to cover multiple worldwide sports ie - soccer, football, basketball, baseball, cricket etc and would be marketed worldwide online. The wooden product itself has a painted cartoon type character in various action poses on it. Whilst I would stay clear of using any team names or logos or motifs etc I would like to use recognized team colours in a loose or ideally not so loose way. This team colours could be for the Countries National teams in the particular sport or city teams. For example in English soccer the colours for Liverpool FC or Manchester United FC etc. In American Basketball Los Angeles Lakers or Chicago Bulls etc. I am wondering if I am likely to be breaking any copyright laws with my products and any advice or information about this greatly appreciated. Many thanks in advance.

 

[army judge]

I am wondering if I am likely to be breaking any copyright laws with my products and any advice or information about this greatly appreciated.

If I were you, I wouldn't even use team colors.

The problem for you is you plan to market your products worldwide.

Even if New Zealand had no problem with you using their "All Black" color motif, India might have a big problem with you using their blue color motif for their cricket and soccer teams.

Your idea will work because of its uniqueness, cuteness, especially if you're targeting children; and not their parents.

 

[bigadri]

Hi army judge. Many thanks for you reply and feedback. Unfortunately our concept basically relies on the kids ordering their favourite teams colours whether this is a major English soccer teams colours or their local under 8s school soccer team colours. We are not going for anything fancy like coloured piping on the collars and cuffs etc but a simple one colour shirt (possibly with stripes in another colour), one colour shorts and one colour socks. We are wondering and thinking whether we circumnavigate a lot of these tough copyright laws by having a function when ordering for the customers to chose the colour of the shirt then separately order the colour of shorts and lastly colour of the socks. All this done and chosen from a simple RGB colour swatch. In this way the customer is bringing together the teams colour kit. It seems to be a bit of a minefield as to what we can do and cant do and hoping this would put us on the outside of that field altogether.

 

[army judge]

The process you're proposing might just avoid any legal pitfalls.

Don't proceed based on any information you receive from anyone but YOUR lawyer.

I suggest you retain one tomorrow, and channel ALL of your business legal issues ONLY through your lawyer.

You hired designers, IT techs, etc..., seeking free legal advice could destroy everything you're building.

Best of luck.

 

[ElleMD]

If you are using anything trademarked by a team, including colors, to sell your product, you risk running into trouble. It won't matter if a customer requests that you use the team colors, or if you do it on your own.

 

[zddoodah]

I am wondering if I am likely to be breaking any copyright laws with my products and any advice or information about this greatly appreciated.

This isn't a copyright issue. It's potentially a trademark issue, and it would be virtually useless for anyone who hasn't looked at your product to opine about the likelihood of a violation of any given country's trademark laws.