A federal judge has rejected Pepperdine University’s bid for a court order to block Netflix from releasing parts of episodes of its upcoming series Running Point that allegedly infringe on its basketball team’s trademarks.
The legal battle revolves around a lawsuit Pepperdine University filed against Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery on Thursday accusing it of trademark infringement. It said that the NBA team at the center of Running Point “bears a striking resemblance in branding to Pepperdine’s longstanding and well-known Waves athletics program.”
In a statement at the time, Pepperdine University senior vice president Sean Burnett said that the school “established itself as a Christian University committed to academic excellence and a world-class athletics program” but that “Netflix continues to promote Running Point, a new series that has misappropriated our trademarked name, the Waves, our colors, blue and orange, our hometown of Los Angeles, and even the year we were founded as an institution.”
He added, “Given this flagrant disregard for our intellectual property and the damage to our institutional identity, together with Netflix’s and Warner Bros.’ continued refusal to resolve Pepperdine’s concerns, we believe it necessary to seek court intervention.”
U.S. District Judge Cynthia Valenzuela found that Netflix’s use of the Waves’ marks “does not explicitly mislead consumers as to the source of the work.” She stressed that the show’s title cards show to viewers that Netflix, WBD and Mindy Kaling are responsible for the series.
More to come…
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