Trademark – Conflicting Decisions Raise Uncertainty

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The line between what does and doesn’t constitute trademark infringement in the print-on-demand marketplace is being challenged

A pair of conflicting 2021 decisions in trademark infringement cases against print-on-demand marketplace Redbubble will likely result in more litigation involving print-on-demand websites in the years ahead, says Andrew Avsec, a partner and co-lead of Crowell & Moring’s Technology Litigation, Trademark & Copyright practice.

The Ohio State University sued Redbubble in 2017, claiming that it sold goods using OSU’s trademarked images without approval. Redbubble argued that it had not infringed on OSU’s trademark because it was merely a “transactional intermediary” between the artists who display their designs on Redbubble and consumers who order off the site products—such as T-shirts and posters—with those designs printed on them.

Read the complete article in the Litigation Forecast 2022.