Fender Trademarks and Pickups?

[telepicker]

This has probably been asked before. If it has, my apologies.

My question is: Fender have trademarked names and also headstocks. I believe that they now want to stop people from making guitars the same shapes. BUT has Seymour Duncan or anyone else been contacted by Fender because they made replacement or similar pickups for Fender guitars? Has Fender tried to prevent anyone from making similar pickups to theirs is what I'm asking.

 

[Dooogz]

Re: Fender Trademarks and Pickups?

I wouldnt have thought they would be allowed to try and stop that!! But thats just my first thoughts...

 

[TheArchitect]

Re: Fender Trademarks and Pickups?

Unless Fender invented the pickup (they didn't) they would have no basis for doing so.

Even if they had, I don't think its in their best interest to try that. Its one thing to tell another company they can't use your body shape. It will piss off some people but is probably not going to crush your user base. Although I would not buy their products if they went down that road.

However, telling your user base that you are going to eliminate a large segment of after market product they could use to mod their instrument will thoroughly piss off a big chunk of the user base and will certainly impact buyers decisions. I would never buy an instrument if knew going in the maker was trying to limit my choices in modifying the instrument. For thst matter I have already sworn off Gibson for their BS lawsuit against PRS. Maybe I am just a radical on this issue.

 

[telepicker]

Re: Fender Trademarks and Pickups?

Know what you mean. I've played Gibson and Fenders for years and my main axe is a Tele but really does piss you off when after all these years, shapes of axes even came into it. Old Leo himself copied a few things. Lets face it. A guitar may be similar but you know whether its a Fender or Gibson up against a cheap copy. I was just worried a bit that FMIC would go down the pickup path.

 

[MikeS]

Re: Fender Trademarks and Pickups?

How would they trademark the single coil pickip design??? It's in use by EVERY pickup manufacturer and guitar companies, all of which likely have patents on their products.

Besides, patent laws don't prohibit you from making a similar product, they simply prohibit you from making an identical product and selling it as your own.

 

[telepicker]

Re: Fender Trademarks and Pickups?

OK thanks all for your comments.

 

[matt99camero]

Re: Fender Trademarks and Pickups?

I don't think they could do that with pickups. That would be a huge court battle cause every company who makes or uses pickups would be in on it. I think that would be like GM telling every car manufactuer that they made the first car so they should be the sole car manufactuer. Not sure if a GM was the first but just an example.