Fifa puts the boot in
Soccer body takes on Soweto company
Fifa has hauled a Soweto entrepreneur to court over the use of the words “South Africa” and “2010” in his company’s name.
Businessman Job Masemola registered his company, South African Dream 2010, in 2001 — three years before the country won the rights to host the Fifa 2010 World Cup.
The case — to be heard on Thursday at Pretoria’s Tribunal of the Registrar of Trademarks and overseen by the Department of Trade and Industry — is not the only company the world soccer body accuses of violating its trademark.
South Africa’s 2010 Local Organising Committee chief executive Danny Jordaan said Masemola was just one of many whom Fifa’s lawyers were taking to court.
The 19 pages of court papers served on Masemola, a former regional winner of the Sanlam Entrepreneur of the Year award, detail Fifa’s demands that the words “South Africa” and “2010” be dropped from his company’s name.
Fifa lawyers say the words make it inevitable that people will assume the business is connected to the soccer tournament.
Masemola said he felt bullied by Fifa.
“There are laws of trademark in the country which must be followed by everyone. Fifa cannot come here and bully the laws of this country because they are a big body. I am prepared to even take this to the Constitutional Court,” he told Metro.
“I have invested emotionally, financially and a lot of time in this project because I believe in it. I have spent over R25000 in legal costs concerning this matter.”
Masemola — who owns a number of other companies — said his South African Dream 2010 firm had nothing to do with soccer or the World Cup. It is a skills exchange programme for school pupils.
The Soweto businessman rose to prominence in the ’90s after inventing a gas food warmer.
Masemola said Fifa’s legal action had affected his health.
But Fifa says that wherever the World Cup is staged, traders who are not sponsors try to gain the benefit of association with the event without paying for the privilege.
No other company is allowed to muscle in on Fifa’s turf. Even branded stadiums — like Joburg’s FNB Stadium and Durban’s Absa Park — have to change their names for the duration of the tournament to comply with Fifa rules.
Just over a year ago, the South African Parliament had to pass a host of legislation to ensure there would be no violation of Fifa trademarks.
“This process of seeking to rely on the fame of the event without being a sponsor is commonly known as ‘ambush marketing’,” said Fifa in court papers through its Gauteng lawyers, Spoor & Fisher.
“The desirability of the tournament for potential sponsors will be greatly diminished if others can enjoy the same benefits of association with the tournament enjoyed by sponsors, but without having to pay sponsorship fees.”
Fifa also claimed that when Masemola filed his application in 2001, there was indeed a dream on the part of many people that a Fifa World Cup — possibly in 2010 — would be staged in Africa.
The soccer body said Masemola gambled on the fact that the 2010 World Cup would be awarded to South Africa. “This pattern of trademark application filed by [Masemola] demonstrates a course of conduct on his part to indeed ambush the 2010 Fifa World Cup tournament,” Fifa’s court papers state.
Jordaan said Fifa’s rights protection committee was inundated with similar cases and referred Metro to Mansoor Parker, of the Local Organising Committee’s rights protection committee.
However, Parker was not available for comment.
Article from http://www.sundaytimes.co.za/
We can understand a patent for "Fifa 2010 soccer", but we are ALL, as South Africans, involved in 2010 soccer - so Fifa can just back off. Message from http://www.southafrica-carhire.com
Fifa has hauled a Soweto entrepreneur to court over the use of the words “South Africa” and “2010” in his company’s name.
Businessman Job Masemola registered his company, South African Dream 2010, in 2001 — three years before the country won the rights to host the Fifa 2010 World Cup.
The case — to be heard on Thursday at Pretoria’s Tribunal of the Registrar of Trademarks and overseen by the Department of Trade and Industry — is not the only company the world soccer body accuses of violating its trademark.
South Africa’s 2010 Local Organising Committee chief executive Danny Jordaan said Masemola was just one of many whom Fifa’s lawyers were taking to court.
The 19 pages of court papers served on Masemola, a former regional winner of the Sanlam Entrepreneur of the Year award, detail Fifa’s demands that the words “South Africa” and “2010” be dropped from his company’s name.
Fifa lawyers say the words make it inevitable that people will assume the business is connected to the soccer tournament.
Masemola said he felt bullied by Fifa.
“There are laws of trademark in the country which must be followed by everyone. Fifa cannot come here and bully the laws of this country because they are a big body. I am prepared to even take this to the Constitutional Court,” he told Metro.
“I have invested emotionally, financially and a lot of time in this project because I believe in it. I have spent over R25000 in legal costs concerning this matter.”
Masemola — who owns a number of other companies — said his South African Dream 2010 firm had nothing to do with soccer or the World Cup. It is a skills exchange programme for school pupils.
The Soweto businessman rose to prominence in the ’90s after inventing a gas food warmer.
Masemola said Fifa’s legal action had affected his health.
But Fifa says that wherever the World Cup is staged, traders who are not sponsors try to gain the benefit of association with the event without paying for the privilege.
No other company is allowed to muscle in on Fifa’s turf. Even branded stadiums — like Joburg’s FNB Stadium and Durban’s Absa Park — have to change their names for the duration of the tournament to comply with Fifa rules.
Just over a year ago, the South African Parliament had to pass a host of legislation to ensure there would be no violation of Fifa trademarks.
“This process of seeking to rely on the fame of the event without being a sponsor is commonly known as ‘ambush marketing’,” said Fifa in court papers through its Gauteng lawyers, Spoor & Fisher.
“The desirability of the tournament for potential sponsors will be greatly diminished if others can enjoy the same benefits of association with the tournament enjoyed by sponsors, but without having to pay sponsorship fees.”
Fifa also claimed that when Masemola filed his application in 2001, there was indeed a dream on the part of many people that a Fifa World Cup — possibly in 2010 — would be staged in Africa.
The soccer body said Masemola gambled on the fact that the 2010 World Cup would be awarded to South Africa. “This pattern of trademark application filed by [Masemola] demonstrates a course of conduct on his part to indeed ambush the 2010 Fifa World Cup tournament,” Fifa’s court papers state.
Jordaan said Fifa’s rights protection committee was inundated with similar cases and referred Metro to Mansoor Parker, of the Local Organising Committee’s rights protection committee.
However, Parker was not available for comment.
Article from http://www.sundaytimes.co.za/
We can understand a patent for "Fifa 2010 soccer", but we are ALL, as South Africans, involved in 2010 soccer - so Fifa can just back off. Message from http://www.southafrica-carhire.com
Labels: South Africa - 2010 soccer
