Fender, one of the world’s largest musical instrument manufacturers, has reignited attempts to protect its Stratocaster guitar body style, which has seen countless iterations and “homages” over its seven-decade existence. In recent memory, Fender attempted to enforce copyright and trade dress rights in the United States, which was largely unsuccessful, and resulted in other manufactures continuing to offer “S-Type” guitar bodies similar to the Stratocaster.
Recently, however, Fender successfully obtained a default judgment in a German regional court that recognized copyright in and to the Stratocaster guitar body style. Seeking to capitalize on this, Fender reportedly sent cease-and-desist letters to several manufacturers regarding the copyright status of the Stratocaster in Germany. This led Thomann, one of Europe’s largest guitar manufacturers, to file the equivalent of a declaratory judgment action in German federal court, in which it seeks a decision that the Stratocaster is not actually subject to copyright protection, in order to resolve the dispute.
The case is in its early phases, and Fender has not yet responded.
The Firm routinely assists its clients in similar matters of copyright and trade dress infringement, and has experience overseeing and managing international disputes, including in Europe.
