16/02/2005
NEWS STORY
According to an article in today's Daily Telegraph, the organizers of the proposed breakaway championship, the Grand Prix World Championship (GPWC) could still use the term 'F1' in the name of its series, despite Bernie Ecclestone's claim that the term cannot be used in connection with any perceived rival series to the Formula One World Championship, or indeed any other sporting event.
"While researching this topic we came across some highly interesting and surprising issues," Xander Heijnen, a consultant to the GPWC, told the newspaper.
While Dr Jeremy Philpott, a spokesman for the Patent Office, confirmed that the GPWC could call its proposed series "Formula One", because it refers to "a type of motor sport rather than applying to goods or services coming from a specific individual or legal entity."
According to the report; "Ecclestone's intellectual property division, Formula One Licensing (FOL), has no pan-European registrations for the words 'Formula 1', 'F1' or 'Formula One' in the category which covers 'sporting and cultural activities'. 'Formula One' defines a class of motor racing judged according to engine size, weight and fuel capacity".
"Trademarks are not supposed to be descriptive of the goods or services," adds Mr Philpott, "but be distinctive of them.
"Mr Ecclestone's commercial rights are for a specific type of Formula One: the 'FIA Formula One World Championship'," he added. "He bought these for 100 years in 2000 from the sport's governing body, the FIA, for £193m ($360m)".
It's been claimed that Ecclestone is seeking similar control over the term "Grand Prix" and "GP".