For example, the British clothing retailer French Connection conceived of its cheeky FCUK logo while separating faxes from its Hong Kong and UK offices (FCHK versus FCUK). Hearing a challenge against the mark’s registration, a tribunal ruled that “FCUK", in itself, was not objectionable, and was unconvinced that the British public found it “significantly offensive". In 2014, the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) cancelled the trademark registration of the Washington Redskins, an American football team, finding the name offensive towards Native Americans. In the UK, before obtaining trade mark registration, French Connection had sued the registrant of Fcuk.com for passing off. Ultimately, amid falling sales of French Connection, youth sentiment may be the brand name’s harshest judge.

Source: Mint April 09, 2019 11:26 UTC