Posted in: Comics | Tagged: comicsgate, ethan van sciver, preston poulter, trademark

Preston Poulter Trademarks Comicsgate

Back in August/Septemeber 2018, Vox Day, writer, editor, video game designer, blogger and alt-right activist, stated he was going to launch a comic book imprint called Comicsgate. Comic creator Ethan Van Sciver who has become associated with the hashtag, stated that Day had no right to the name, and that as Ethan then ran a YouTube show called Comicsgate Live, that he had the rights to make a comic book imprint called 'Comicsgate' rather than Day.

However within days of this conversation, Antonio J Malpica of Floridan comics publisher Scorn Comics, who was then fundraising for his comic book Detective Dead actually applied to register 'Comics Gate' as a publishing trademark. In discussion with the US government, lawyers acting for Antonio stated that 'Comics Gate appearing in the mark means or signifies or is a term of art for The unity between consumers and creators that have been ostracized in the comic book industry due to their political beliefs and/or from expressing their desires to read A-political storytelling in comics for people of color, creed, nationality, gender, identity, and people from all walks of life. in the relevant trade or industry or as used in connection with the goods/services/collective membership organization listed in the application.'

Without opposition, the trademark was provisionally granted, However, in March 2020, this trademark application was marked by the US government as 'abandoned because no Statement of Use or Extension Request timely filed after Notice of Allowance was issued.' Antonio did not show them that he was using the trademark, was going to use the trademark, or asked for an extension.

But now someone else appears to have stepped up to register a very similar trademark, one word this time, 'Comicsgate' for the field of comic books. The registration is made by Common Sense Press Inc DBA Pocket Jacks Comics, of Dallas, Texas. Preston Poulter is the writer and creator who self publishes under the name Pocket Jacks Comics, and is a regular critical voice of ComicsGate, with YouTube videos commonly covering 'Last Week in Comicsgate'. Which means he may well have a case to register the word as a trademark.

Bleeding Cool discovered this information independently and contacted Poulter for comment this morning. He told Bleeding Cool "I registered Comicsgate, one word. As I publish comic books, it won't be hard to a book that uses the trademark, which no one else has done to date. I will establish criteria over who can use the trademark that will forbid engaging in online harassment, the doxxing of customers, or failure to fulfill in a timely fashion." Is there anyone willing to challenge him on that? You can see his latest video below, but I think it will be the one that comes next which will be the most interesting.

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