Posted in: Comics | Tagged: Comics, dc, new zealand, superman, trademark

DC Comics Loses Trademark Fight Against Superloans

Published Fri, 09 Dec 2011 07:00:32 -0600

Yesterday, assistant commissioner of trademarks in New Zealand, Jenny Walden, as declared that Superloans character Buck does not infringe the Superman trademark of DC Comics/Warnr Bros

The Dominion Post reports that Walden said that, "although it was clear Buck was a superhero because of his "exaggerated musculature", fitting body suit and his ability to fly, there were clear differences between the two characters."

And that "the shield on Buck's chest with a dollar sign was far different to Superman's, and his portrayal holding money went against Superman's altruistic nature."

And that "the shape of the shield was a point of difference, as Superman's diamond-shaped logo "may be perceived as a reference to strength because a diamond is the hardest naturally occurring substance and Superman is known as the Man of Steel"."

DC were ordered to pay Superloans costs of $3570, a quarter of the company's direct costs. That's only New Zealand dollars though. And the case took three years to come to a decision. Here's a look at the character in full.

The pose from the first image at the top is rather Superman trademarky, but the rest of them look more like The Incredibles. Although this final image from the website may be a bit of a giveaway, in that the company call it "supermanlogo.png"…