There Can Be Only One San Diego Comic-Con, Judge Rules

[left-of-center2012]

A federal judge has awarded San Diego Comic-Con $3.9 million in legal fees in a copyright infringement lawsuit filed in 2014 against Salt Lake City’s comic convention ... the Utah comic book convention has 30 days to stop using the Comic Con name and brand, according to SDCC’s attorney Peter Hahn. The event is now referring to itself on its website as FanX Salt Lake Comic Convention (formerly Salt Lake Comic Con.)

Federal court Judge Anthony Battaglia's ruling Thursday follows a December 2017 jury verdict that the Salt Lake City convention violated San Diego Comic-Con’s trademarked names. The lawsuit was brought against Dan Farr, founder of the Salt Lake City Comic Con. Hahn said Farr would come to San Diego, take pictures at Comic-Con and then post them to his website, as if to make it look like the events were connected.

“It honestly confused people into thinking they were part of the San Diego organization,” Hahn said ... “the ruling will help SDCC protect its brand against similar infringement efforts by comic conventions in other cities.”

David Glanzer, San Diego Comic-Con’s chief communications and strategy officer:
“San Diego Comic Convention has used the Comic-Con brand in connection with our comics and popular arts conventions for almost 50 years,” Glanzer said. “We have invested substantial time, talent and resources in the brand resulting in world-wide recognition of the Comic-Con convention held annually in San Diego.”

https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/There-Can-Be-Only-One-San-Diego-Comic-Con-Judge-Rules-491689421.html

[SWBTATTReg]

1. A sad day for comic book lovers ...

It's sad that these organizations couldn't work together to resolve this situation? Obviously not...I hope that this doesn't cast a pall over other conventions...

“At every opportunity, (the defendants) repeated, re-argued, and recycled arguments already briefed by both parties and analyzed and ruled on by the court,” Judge Battaglia wrote. “This type of wasteful litigation tactic forced SDCC to expend extra, unnecessary legal fees and drove this court to squander already limited judicial resources.”

[left-of-center2012]

2. the defendants

That would be the imitation Comic-cons.
The plaintiffs being the original.

[Javaman]

3. the most insulting part about all of this is...

the san diego "comic-con" has so little do with with comics anymore.

and frankly, the judge is a bit of a halfwit, the term "comic-con" is ubiquitous in the community of conventions now.