The Empire Beer Strikes "Bock" in This Patent and Trademark Story

That's not a typo, folks.... Not by any stretch. In actuality, a bock is a type of German lager, and it turns out that a small new York-based brewing company with such an affinity for Star Wars thought it would be cool to brand one such German lager with the name "Strikes Bock." LucasFilm, though, did have a problem with such a marketing tactic -- for obvious reasons, not unlike the many other disputes they've had before.

You Can Decide Here: Did Empire Brewing Company (Yep, That's Their Name, Too) Overstep Their Legal Bounds?

Funny that the name of the brewing company's "Empire," although that originally had absolutely nothing to do with Star Wars. However, LucasFilm had a problem with the name of the lager causing a lot of confusion given the production company also owns Skywalker Vineyards, a brand producing Star Wars-themed wine. So they may have a case there.

However, as we know about patent and trademark law is this: if it's a parody, it's not infringement. Being in the same market (food and beverage), though, is a disadvantage to Empire Brewing company. However, the brewing company's not exactly terrified of this legal death star approaching as shown in the video they submitted.

Love that video, don't you? Did you catch the stormtrooper in the back there? Talk about cheeky fun.... At the moment, both parties over this dispute are waiting for a ruling.

"These Aren't the Droids You're Looking for" Suddenly Has New Patent and Trademark Meaning

How so? It's remarkable, actually -- that the word "droid" can be protected under intellectual property laws, and yet the funny thing is we have a smartphone out there with the exact same 'title'. Still, we currently don't see LucasFilm throwing up a big stink over that like with other disputes as shown here -- because, yes, the production company does, in fact, own the rights to the term "droid," meaning NO OTHER ENTITY can use that term for any creative project or business venture.

But Why? Why Is the Word "Droid" Off Limits?

We bring up that same mobile phone manufacturer that released a little smartphone known as the DROID. You can see where we're going with this: LucasFilm actually ended up trademarking the term "droid in 2009 after Verizon launched that brand of Android phone. To avoid confusion, Verizon actually paid Lucasfilm to continue using the term, something a company can do to avoid any legal issues.

What's funny about all of this patent and trademark law stuff is that the word "droid" wasn't even invented by LucasFilm. The word came up back in 1952, for a sci-fi short story written by Mari Wolf. Yet, LucasFilm owns the word -- in every possible way.

Just Another Reason to Be on the Up and Up About Your Patents and Trademarks, Right?

Want to know what else is funny? Verizon pays LucasFilm for the term DROID, and Steve Jobs, once a shareholder of Disney (who owns LucasFilm) gets a percentage for every DROID phone sold (and he was one of the creators of the iPhone).

Why President Ronald Reagan Turned to the Dark Side and Joined Forces With the Empire

We're just joking, of course.... This isn't political satire. What it is, though, is an in-depth study regarding patent and trademark law that may surprise you. You know that LucasFilm is pretty particular about their trademarks and patents (for all of their fictional properties, of course), but ever hear of a U.S. President facing the Force in a bad way?

It's True -- Ronald Reagan Accepted the Term "Star Wars" for His New Defense Program During the Cold War

The idea made sense, of course, especially when the program aimed to fund space-based laser missiles and battle stations. And this was back in 1983, so you can only imagine the scope of this....

It, however, wasn't simply Reagan who felt the heat of that light saber from LucasFilm, asking the government to cease and desist on the naming of this program having anything to do with the actual intellectual property. 1985 was the year that the production company sued High Frontier, the manufacturer for the program, claiming trademark infringement.

Sadly, for LucasFilm, the Government Ruled in Favor of Reagan's Defense Program

One thing you have to understand about patents and trademarks is that if they're being used as a parody or in a descriptive manner, it's not infringement. Reagan may have gone to the dark side with that one, but one thing's for sure: Luke Skywalker brought him back to the light (much to LucasFilm's dismay).