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Thread: 'Forget about it': EU kills pizzeria's 'Mafia' trademark

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    gamewell45's Avatar Senior Member
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    'Forget about it': EU kills pizzeria's 'Mafia' trademark

    Imagine having a pizza chain called "The Mafia"; well the EU courts in Italy did not see any humor in it and refused to grant European trademark protection for the Spanish-owned company.


    LUXEMBOURG (Reuters) - EU judges failed to see the funny side of branding a chain of pizzerias as “The Mafia”, rejecting an appeal on Thursday by a Spanish company to keep European trademark protection for its marketing slogan.
    The European Union’s General Court in Luxembourg agreed with a complaint by the Italian government that it was immoral to trade on the name of a “criminal organization” whose “activities breach the very values on which the EU is founded”.

    The judgment, which can be appealed to the European Court of Justice, found that the EU Intellectual Property Office was right to accept Italy’s demand in 2015 to cancel a 10-year-old trademark held by La Mafia Franchises of Madrid, which runs a national chain offering pizzas, pasta and other Italian cuisine.
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    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-e...-idUSKCN1GR1XV
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    Max Rockatansky (04-04-2018)

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    The EU; going broke, kneeling to Putin and, now, proving they have no sense of humor.


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    gamewell45 (04-04-2018)

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    The SCOTUS ruled otherwise.
    Any time you give a man something he doesn't earn, you cheapen him. Our kids earn what they get, and that includes respect. -- Woody Hayes​

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    Seems like a ridiculous over reach
    LETS GO BRANDON
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    I fail to see the big deal...

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    I can see why the Italians wouldn't see it as funny. Take a food that is exclusively identified with one country or cultural group and conflate it with a highly recognized criminal organization associated with that country and that is offensive and disrespectful. Were there a restaurant in Spain or Italy or even America called Nazi Schnitzel Company, I think that Germans would object. Americans might be dismayed to find a proliferation of KKK American Diners in Europe.
    In quoting my post, you affirm and agree that you have not been goaded, provoked, emotionally manipulated or otherwise coerced into responding.



    "The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world’s problems.”
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dr. Who View Post
    I can see why the Italians wouldn't see it as funny. Take a food that is exclusively identified with one country or cultural group and conflate it with a highly recognized criminal organization associated with that country and that is offensive and disrespectful. Were there a restaurant in Spain or Italy or even America called Nazi Schnitzel Company, I think that Germans would object. Americans might be dismayed to find a proliferation of KKK American Diners in Europe.
    I have Italian in me. I don't see it as a knock on Italians, it's not like all Italians are mobsters.

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    Quote Originally Posted by The Xl View Post
    I have Italian in me. I don't see it as a knock on Italians, it's not like all Italians are mobsters.
    You are an American with Italian heritage. It's not your country being identified with criminals. I don't think the Japanese would be thrilled with a Yakuza Teriyaki Palace franchise all over the world. However, it's worse for the Italians, because Mafia movies have come to symbolize Italian culture to many people, thanks to Hollywood. American-Italian criminal stereotypes have been sold to the world as a form of entertainment and I'm sure that's the reason that someone called that restaurant "The Mafia". In Italy "the Mafia" is not a trivial thing. The Mafiosi in Italy are literally domestic terror organizations with a profit motive.
    In quoting my post, you affirm and agree that you have not been goaded, provoked, emotionally manipulated or otherwise coerced into responding.



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    Quote Originally Posted by Dr. Who View Post
    You are an American with Italian heritage. It's not your country being identified with criminals. I don't think the Japanese would be thrilled with a Yakuza Teriyaki Palace franchise all over the world. However, it's worse for the Italians, because Mafia movies have come to symbolize Italian culture to many people, thanks to Hollywood. American-Italian criminal stereotypes have been sold to the world as a form of entertainment and I'm sure that's the reason that someone called that restaurant "The Mafia". In Italy "the Mafia" is not a trivial thing. The Mafiosi in Italy are literally domestic terror organizations with a profit motive.
    Italians have/had a big mob presence in the states too.

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    Quote Originally Posted by The Xl View Post
    Italians have/had a big mob presence in the states too.
    They do, but they do not affect people as broadly as they do in Italy. The Mafiosi in Italy are very grassroots, especially in smaller towns and villages. They are everywhere. I'm not sure how many native Italians or even first generation Italians that you know, but those who came from the old country are terrified of the Mafiosi and they don't joke about them. They despise them.
    In quoting my post, you affirm and agree that you have not been goaded, provoked, emotionally manipulated or otherwise coerced into responding.



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