Wal-Mart Seeks Rave Logo
US supermarket giant Wal-Mart are embroiled in a legal dispute over the acid house smiley face image, that they want to trademark.
Thursday, May 11, 2006 - 23:00
US supermarket giant Wal-Mart is involved in a legal dispute over the acid house smiley face image, which it wants to trademark.
A Frenchman who claims to have invented the yellow smiley face back in 1968 is opposing Wal-Mart's move.
For many, the symbol is a distinct part of rave culture, and for years clubbers wore t-shirts emblazoned with the logo like it was an unofficial uniform.
It has also become a popular tool used on Internet messageboards to convey feelings or a tone of voice.
The smiley face originally popped up as a popular image in 1970s counter-culture, and has since been adopted by a number of different groups.
But since 1996 Wal-Mart has used the image in the US on uniforms, and it wants sole rights to it in the US retail sector.
Franklin Loufrani, the man opposing Wal-Mart, has marketed the sign since the early 1970s and owns rights to the logo in more than 80 countries, excluding the US.
A decision is expected to be made in August 2006.
A Frenchman who claims to have invented the yellow smiley face back in 1968 is opposing Wal-Mart's move.
For many, the symbol is a distinct part of rave culture, and for years clubbers wore t-shirts emblazoned with the logo like it was an unofficial uniform.
It has also become a popular tool used on Internet messageboards to convey feelings or a tone of voice.
The smiley face originally popped up as a popular image in 1970s counter-culture, and has since been adopted by a number of different groups.
But since 1996 Wal-Mart has used the image in the US on uniforms, and it wants sole rights to it in the US retail sector.
Franklin Loufrani, the man opposing Wal-Mart, has marketed the sign since the early 1970s and owns rights to the logo in more than 80 countries, excluding the US.
A decision is expected to be made in August 2006.
Copyright Thrust Publishing Ltd. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit being given to www.djmag.com as the source.
