US Olympic and Paralympic Committee Sue Prime Alleging Trademark Infringement

Brands and advertisers often use high-profile sporting events like the Olympics and Paralympics to promote their products. While these events are an opportunity, those taking it must ensure that any advertisements and promotions do not infringe both the applicable regulatory frameworks, such as the advertising codes, or the intellectual property of other brands or organisations.

In a move which demonstrates the high value placed on protecting intellectual property, and the potential for a flurry of Olympic and Paralympic associated litigation, the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee ("the USOPC") has reportedly sued the energy drink brand Prime Hydration LLC ("Prime") for alleged trade mark infringement.

The allegations

In its lawsuit filed in Colorado, the USOPC has accused Prime, which is co-owned by YouTubers Logan Paul and KSI, of using Olympic-related phrases and symbols to boost the appeal and market-reach of their products and of doing so 'deliberately' and 'in bad faith'. One of the examples cited in the lawsuit is of an online promotion that encouraged customers to "step up your hydration game with the Kevin Durant Olympic Prime Drink!". Others reportedly include use of the terms 'Olympian', 'Team USA', and 'Going for gold'.

Prime is also alleged to have ignored a cease-and-desist letter sent from the USOPC prior to the lawsuit and allowed the infringing products to remain on shelves and to be featured in internet advertisements.

As we highlighted in our previous blog on the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, the intellectual property associated with the Olympics, including the trade mark of the Olympic symbol of five interconnected rings, is held centrally by the International Olympic Committee and distributed to national Olympic Committees. The USOPC also owns many federal trade marks including for the words 'OLYMPIC' and 'TEAM USA'.

Notably, the USOPC has also alleged that consumers could be misled into thinking there was an agreement between themselves and Prime. It has been reported that Coca-Cola Enterprises currently holds an exclusive agreement with the USOPC granting them the sole right to use certain trade marks, including 'OLYMPIC' and 'TEAM USA', for beverages in the US. Therefore, if the USOPC does not take steps to protect its trade marks, this may also have financial and contractual consequences and impact any future commercial deals for these rights.

Prime has yet to make a public comment in response to the lawsuit.

Key takeaways

The USOPC evidently is prepared to act swiftly in an attempt to safeguard its intellectual property rights and ensure that consumers are not confused or misled about which brands are officially affiliated with the Olympics. Other Olympic and Paralympic committees around the world will also no doubt be keeping a watchful eye out at this time. More generally, this is a reminder of the steps which businesses will take to protect their brands and commercial revenues and of the potential for costly and high-profile disputes to arise in cases of alleged IP infringement.

We regularly advise clients on matters related to intellectual property and advertising compliance, so if you would like to discuss anything raised in this blog in more detail please get in touch.