British Company Trademarks the Word ‘Bitcoin’ and Creates Concern

Trademarks and patents represent a common cause for lawsuits throughout the world, and this is understandable granted the fact that they are the main mechanism for protecting intellectual property.

On the other hand, trademarks in the cryptocurrency market are a different story, as the technology is decentralized, and coins are meant to be usable by anyone. Despite this, and the popularity of most major digital currencies, a UK-based company somehow managed to successfully trademark ‘Bitcoin’.

At this time, there is little information regarding how the company managed to obtain this trademark, and what it wishes to do with it in the future, especially since there seems to be no connection between the organization and the crypto market. There is however a concern pertaining to what this patent means for the industry. It is believed that no major changes will occur worldwide, yet there is a possibility for the patent to be enforced in the UK.  

A Redditor recently shared his story, concerning how he received a cease & desist letter, after using the bitcoin term as part of his UK-based t-shirt shop. With this in mind, the trademark could potentially create a grey legal area for the UK, and it is not yet clear how local companies that use the term without permission can avoid infringement of intellectual property laws.

On a worldwide scale, previous attempts at trademarking Bitcoin have been made, with most being unsuccessful granted the huge popularity of the digital currency, and its decentralized status.

Reports also indicate that the company is in fact interest in registering trademarks. In fact, a while back, it has submitted an application to trademark the word ‘Westworld’, which is the name of an HBO-produced show. The application is still pending, and hasn’t been examined by the UK patent authority yet.