Ever since squirrelgrease posted the link to Paisley Park's trademark filings (great find by the way), I've been going through them looking at some of the most interesting ones. Would be interested as to what people think of some of this.

1. Purple Rain
http://tmportal.uspto.gov...=77438125#

Apparently he's been trying to trademark "Purple Rain" since 2008... makes sense, it is most associated with him. The request is not in final approval because he has to provide proof of using the trademark for commercial purposes. THe most recent filings in May of this year (actually as recent as May 26 from Londell--still in employ I see) requests an extension for providing "SOU" (Statement of Use), which he's been granted--6 months renewable--to prove that Purple Rain is actually a trademark.

2. Fingerprince
http://tmportal.uspto.gov...=78567786#

WHAT THE HELL??? filed back in 2005 for "Greeting cards, notecards, postcards, stationery, stickers and posters" I guess this was an idea back in the NPGMC days? It was never used so the app was abandoned. Imagine a line of "Fingerprince" notecards?

3. Interesting to see trademark applications for "Vanity 6," "Mazarati," "Good
Question," "The Family," all groups he's produced or recorded for his label.

Looking at The Family one, I recalled that Prince denied Paul Peterson, Susannah, etc. the permission to use the name "The Family" claiming he had the rights over the name. Turns out that the Trademark office denied his application, in part because it conflicts with so many other TM's that go by "The Family" including, get this "Puff Daddy and the Family" Wow. Isn't that some karma for you?

He had the same problem with trying to trademark "Vanity 6"--to many uses of "Vanity" already trademarked. But was successful in trademarking "Nasty 6" whaaaaa?

Similar problem with "Mazarati" for possible confusion with "Maserati." Check his attorney's response to trademark office:

"Registrants' goods and services invoke an Italian surname. By contrast, Applicant's MAZARATI mark was an American R&B formed in the mid-1980s. The goods and services offered by the Applicant under the MAZARATI mark are unique and created by Applicant. The parties' goods and services are also marketed to distinct groups of purchasers. Applicant's customers are looking for goods and services relating to a musical group. Registrants' customers, on the other hand, relate to a women's shoe and to a car manufacturer with associated collateral goods"

This is really interesting because if knowledge serves me correctly, he only wrote two of the songs offered under the "Mazarati" mark, but are claiming them here. Who named the group, was it him?

(Funny sidenote... I remember doing a high school class project on the Minneapolis sound, and when I got to Mazarati, my teacher tried to tell me that I had the name spelled wrong... that it was Maserati )

What's really interesting is that many of these deliberations have continued well into this past May 2010.

I guess it's all part of routine intellectual property protection filings, but still interesting that he's making a grab of these names recently.
[Edited 5/29/10 8:43am]
[Edited 5/29/10 8:45am]

One of these days he'll want to own words as 'the', 'a' or 'some' because he's used them in his songs...

vitriol said:

vitriol said:

As well as 2 for "to"
or 4 for "for"

Sure he invented texting before our phones could do it!

He also trademarked the design of the Purpleaxxe™

Article: http://www.google.com/pat...ers+nelson

Picture: http://www.google.com/pat...on&f=false

Dated July 26, 1994.

I still think The Family should use that name, but maybe they just don't care to deal with Prince throwing a pussy fit.

jfrost said:

Yep, he sure did that and egyptian art for the "eye".

I thought this thread was gonna be about Prince's wonderful dentistry!