TSR Now it’s WotC’s Turn: WotC Moves Against TSR3

I guess after you provoke somebody enough, they’ll eventually bite back. The company has begun trademark cancellation procedures against the newest TSR.

TSR3 briefly filed for a court declaration on Dec 7th as to their ownership of the TSR trademarks — with an IndieGoGo campaign to fund it — and then voluntarily dismissed it a couple of days later on Dec 9th.

This filing is dated Dec 6th, the day before TSR3 launched its campaign.

In WotC’s response, they cite fraud as one of the causes of action, alleging that TSR3 misled the trademark office in its original application.

Mike Dunford, on Twitter, breaks down the action.

TSR - TSR3.5 Voluntarily Dismisses Lawsuit

A lawsuit filed by TSR3 against D&D owners Wizards of the Coast a few days ago was voluntarily dismissed. Dismissal without prejudice means that the suit can be filed again. The suit lasted two days from the 7th to the 9th of December. The IndieGoGo fundraiser to fund it is still running...

www.enworld.org

TSR - TSR3.5 Launches IndieGogo Campaign to "Stop" WotC

The latest in the TSR3 saga, which has gone quiet for a while, is a new IndieGoGo campaign launched to "stop Wizards of the Coast". They cite wrongful bullying of TSR, and refusal to answer requests that WotC show TSR "proof of their claims" (although the campaign page doesn't mention what those...

www.enworld.org

 

[thirdkingdom]

LLCs aren't always a perfect shield, though, and the legal protection varies based on the type and where it is filed. The Sandy Hook lawyer was talking about this on a recent Knowledge Fight episode regarding Alex Jones.

 

[Umbran]

What this means is that their poorly-crafted and ill-advised suit for a Declaratory Judgement had a basis in that they were hoping (rather naively) to get a judgment in their favor which would negate WotC's attempt to cancel their trademark claim.

I think not. Bureaucracies move slowly - if WotC filed on the 6th, I don't expect TSR3.5 would have been alerted so quickly as to put together and file their suit the very next day.

 

[Jaeger]

It means WoTC is filing a motion to cancel the trademark that LaNasa filed, citing reasons:

That also means WotC has been preparing for this for some months, since the first drama took place. Which is bad news for LaNasa indeed, as it means this wasn't a reaction but a deliberate planned action.

Pure Lawfare.

WotC will probably win by virtue of having actual money, and lawyers.

Also a pure own goal by NuTSR.

They kept name dropping WotC for no reason at all in their self-created drama.

So the Ha$bro/WotC Megacorp is gonna Megacorp...

 

[Sacrosanct]

TSR Hobbies has several rare D&D items in the museum that were donated to them.


oh and a lot of dollar store dice.

If I recall, TSR LLC and DHSM are two different entities. If they are, then all those things in DHSM are protected.

LaNasa might be dropping the ball on a lot of things, but looking at his history, he knows how to file LLCs to cover for all of those mess ups and move on to the next one. We finally see someone out Kening Ken Whitman.

 

[Dausuul]

LLCs aren't always a perfect shield, though, and the legal protection varies based on the type and where it is filed. The Sandy Hook lawyer was talking about this on a recent Knowledge Fight episode regarding Alex Jones.

I'm sure that Justin LaNasa did everything properly and by the book when he registered this LLC. Justin LaNasa would never cut corners or hire less than adequate legal counsel.

 

[dirtypool]

Apparently, The WotC petition came the day before LaNasa launched his Indigogo campaign and his counter suit. (Per Tenkar of Tenkar's tavern.)

The WOTC petition comes the day before the Indiegogo campaign, but not before the filing of TSR’s suit which according to the documents was initially filed in October.

the timeline looks more like TSR filed suit -> WOTC responded with their Trademark challenge -> LeNasa decided to try to crowdfund a fight with WOTC and then two days later voluntarily dismissed his own suit.

 

[MarkB]

I think not. Bureaucracies move slowly - if WotC filed on the 6th, I don't expect TSR3.5 would have been alerted so quickly as to put together and file their suit the very next day.

Unless they'd specified to them in advance (i.e. in a C&D letter) that they would do so on that date if TSR3.5 didn't comply.

 

[DarkCrisis]

I hope all this doesn’t hurt the museum, the only good thing to come out of all of this nonsense.

 

[Benjamin Olson]

That may be true, but is irrelevant on the current WotC filing. The USPTO doesn't handle copyright, and this isn't a copyright infringement lawsuit.

Indeed. To be clear I feel the (presumed) copyright ownership of the underlying image is relevant to their overall position in regard to that specific mark (and the question of why their legal team focused on that mark over others). It is not, as of yet, part of the action currently being pursued at the PTO.

I am a bit surprised that TSR incorporating an image they have no color of ownership to and that savvy members of the public will at least presume to be the property of WotC wasn't something the lawyers felt they should work into the filing. Yes, they don't handle copyrights, but that doesn't make a copyright irrelevant if it relates to the things that are at issue, like whether the registrant here was trying to mislead the public. But I don't really know exactly what sort of facts the PTO can take into account or what sort of claims might needlessly bog down a speedy ruling from the PTO. Administrative proceedings have their own quirks.

It is also entirely possible that copyright ownership of the specific image is not easily demonstrable due to poor record-keeping of a 40+ year old transaction by a separate company.

 

[Olaf the Stout]

Well you know what the kids say: mess around and discover things.

Me, reading the comments on the IndieGoGo page

I’d say it’s play stupid games, win stupid prizes.