Will.i.am has denied that he is about to sue Pharrell Williams over the similarity to his “i.am” brand name.
It was earlier reported that Will.i.am would be taking action over William’s new logo as it is “confusingly similar” to his. The former Black Eyed Peas singer stated that Pharrell’s logo, which he planned to use on clothing and various other pieces of merchandise, was too similar to his “I AM” logo.
This all came to a head when Will.i.am, whose real name is William James Adama, wrote a notice of opposition, stating, “The registration of the mark … is likely to dilute the I AM mark and the WILL.I.AM mark.”
Pharrell even responded to the order, releasing a statement to Rolling Stone that read, “I am disappointed that Will, a fellow artist, would file a case against me. I am someone who likes to talk things out and, in fact, I attempted to do just that on many occasions. I am surprised in how this is being handled and I am confident that Will’s trademark claims will ultimately be found to be as meritless and ridiculous as I do.”
Will.i.am has since released a Tweet that read, “I am not suing @Pharrell & I never was.
However Ken Hertz, Will.i.am’s lawyer, has since issued a statement to the BBC that contradicts Will.i.am’s comments.
It reads, “will.i.am is not suing Pharrell Williams. What will.i.am has done is what any trademark owner must do to protect and maintain a trademark. This is a run-of-the-mill trademark dispute that has been going on since late last year.”
He then added, “In order to avoid weakening or losing his trademark, will.i.am has an obligation under trademark law to monitor and defend his trademarks against confusingly similar marks. will.i.am has registered several trademarks, including ‘I AM’, which is also emphasised in, and a significant element of, his professional name.
Hertz then concluded, “We think their proposed trademark is too close to our registered and common law trademarks. They disagree. We hope to work out a sensible compromise that will allow both parties to move forward without unnecessary acrimony.”
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