Cafes inspired by fictional characters and settings have recently been a popular trend. Eateries inspired by books, movies and TV shows have continued to pop up around the globe, like the Pokémon Cafe in Tokyo or The Central Perk Cafe inspired by F.R.I.E.N.D.S in Boston. As a business owner, you may be considering opening up your very own character themed café. However, you should ask yourself: will you breach copyright laws or infringe on any trade marks? This article will explain the intellectual property legal framework surrounding character themed cafés and what you need to know before setting up your own.
Copyright Claims
Copyright is a type of intellectual property. It protects original works of authorship, such as novels, music, TV shows and films. Importantly, it is automatically assigned. This means that once they publish the work, the creator has exclusive rights to manage how their creations can be:
- used;
- reproduced;
- published;
- performed;
- communicated;
- distributed; or
- adapted.
An author’s works must be expressed in some material form to be protected. This is because copyright laws such as the Copyright Act 1968 do not protect ideas or themes. Instead, they defend the expression of it in books, music film or other creative mediums.
This fact sheet outlines your rights and obligations as an AI artist regarding intellectual property and copyright.
Hypothetical Example
Say you opened a Lord of the Rings themed café. If you reproduced passages from the novels or artwork from films and used them as décor, you could potentially infringe copyright. However, imagine your café was merely inspired by Lord of the Rings. You may not have violated copyright in expressing ideas based on your interpretation of the books or films.
Trade Marks and Character Themed Cafés
Trade mark violation could pose a more significant concern for character-themed cafés. Importantly, trade marks are used to give their owner exclusive rights to its use. Therefore, trade mark owners will register signs such as logos, symbols, images, or words that are associated with them. This prevents copycats from profiting from their well-established brand.
To use Harry Potter as an example, while the copyright is owned by J.K. Rowling, the trade marks are owned by the entertainment company Warner Bros. In 2009, a UK food blogger who organised a ticketed Harry Potter-themed dinner received a legal notice from Warner Bros shortly after announcing the event. The company stated that mentioning Harry Potter would infringe upon their trade mark rights, although they did not object to a generic wizard-themed night.
If you are thinking of opening a character-themed café, it is recommended that you complete a trade mark search before basing your café’s theme on fictional characters or settings. From there, you can seek the trade mark owner’s consent to use their trade marks, via, for example, a licence agreement. Conducting thorough research and obtaining the required licenses or permissions is essential to avoid legal complications.
Continue reading this article below the formKey Takeaways
When establishing your character-themed café, ensure that you are not using any registered trade marks without permission or infringing on an author’s copyright. For example, do not use notable logos on your café menus, as this would likely be a trade mark violation. Similarly, replicating detailed illustrations of characters or scenery from books or movies could amount to copyright infringement. As a result, you should always seek consent or a license from the owners if you intend to use their intellectual property in this way.
If you are opening a character-themed café and would like assistance with navigating copyright and trade marks, our experienced IP lawyers can assist as part of our LegalVision membership. For a low monthly fee, you will have unlimited access to lawyers to answer your questions and draft and review your documents. Call us today on 1300 544 755 or visit our membership page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Copyright refers to the protection of the material expression of original ideas, for instance, in books, films or TV shows. The ideas themselves are not protected by copyright.
A trade mark is a form of intellectual property that distinguishes the goods and services of one brand from those of other brands.
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