Demon Hunter vs K-pop: Trademark Case Breakdown — Full Breakdown & Transcript

[00:02] where something triggers a memory and just takes you back to the past briefly, like a little wormhole where you're in the passenger seat going back to your childhood. Often times smells do it for people like a beloved scent like maybe

[00:16] fresh apple pie reminding you of Mima's home cooking. Oftent times music like a song reminds you of jamming out in your parents' car when you were a kid. Like it, you know? And this morning I just had that experience that transported me

[00:32] almost 20 years back to my childhood in an instant. So I journey with me. So here, let's do the here real quick here. Lock lock in with me.

[00:48] me. Welcome. It's 2006 again. I am a uh 12-year-old Charles White and one of my favorite bands is Demon Hunter. Demon Hunter is a band that was near and dear to my heart throughout most of my

[01:04] childhood really. I listen to their music constantly. And I haven't even thought about this band really in like the last decade. I I stopped listening to them after the World is a Thorn album they put out in

[01:18] like 2010, whenever that was. That was like their last good album. Everything they released after that, I just lost interest. But today, I saw that they are now trying to sue Netflix because of K-pop Demon Hunters claiming that it's

[01:33] causing confusion, alleging that they violated their trademark because they've been performing as Demon Hunter for about 25 years now. Then they cite an example of a woman who mistakenly bought their tickets when she intended to buy

[01:46] their tickets when she intended to buy K-pop demon hunters tickets instead. this [ __ ] doesn't even have [ __ ] dentures. I'm going to be honest with you. But real quick, let me make a mention. We've got a new scent of

[01:58] TouchGrass available now at usecheky.com. Best soap and best deodorant in the universe. So, this is brand new. This [ __ ] is still so hot. It's got the toilet bowl steaming. This is brand spanking new. They just filed

[02:11] is brand spanking new. They just filed the trademark uh infringement lawsuit. According to the complaint, the K-pop Demon Hunters World Tour moved into almost complete overlap with the goods and services Hyde Lane Demon Hunter had

[02:24] offered under the Demon Hunter name. Now, right away, I just find that to be a little ridiculous because Demon Hunter is not a unique name. In fact, it's a class in World of Warcraft. Demon Hunter is a very common name actually in a lot

[02:39] is a very common name actually in a lot of different settings. So, it's also not of different settings. So, it's also not exclusive to just this band's work. Again, it's a pretty generic standard name. So, it's not unrealistic to think

[02:52] that other things would be operating with Demon Hunter integrated into its name. And they're not really that similar because the entire name is K-pop Demon Hunters. Demon Hunters is also plural, whereas Demon Hunter is

[03:05] singular. But I really don't think it's that easy to confuse these two things. K-pop Demon Hunters is entirely different from Demon Hunter. And again, different from Demon Hunter. And again, Demon Hunter is a very standard name

[03:19] that you'll find in so many other things out there. And these two groups occupy entirely different genres of music. The only way you get these two confused is if you're just not paying attention. Like, it's not an easy mistake to make.

[03:34] And also, it's singular verse plural, which actually does make a huge difference here because if you Google Demon Hunter, singular. The actual name are opining on this are getting wrong. The band's name is not Demon Hunters. It

[03:47] is Demon Hunter. And when you Google that, once you scroll past like the trendy news because of how big this story's become, the first things you get you get their website. You don't even

[04:00] time you get K-pop demon hunters before them in the Google search is if you do plural Demon Hunters, but also when you look at Demon Hunter, you also then get World of Warcraft because it's not exclusive to just the band's name. Now,

[04:15] if you YouTube Demon Hunter, then you do get K-pop Demon Hunters before the band, but that's simply just because of how big of an IP this has become with K-pop Demon Hunters. It's a juggernaut now. So, YouTube prioritizes that for

[04:29] anything even [ __ ] adjacent to it. But when you're actually googling the band's name correctly, you get the band. It's not even really being drowned out It's not even really being drowned out here. And again, this is a metal band

[04:41] here. And again, this is a metal band versus a K-pop band. a K-pop group that actively has K-pop in its name to distinguish itself from everything else. It like I really think if you get these confused, it is on you. So, I really

[04:53] confused, it is on you. So, I really don't see a lot of legs for it to stand on about a complete overlap of goods and services between these two. They're not in the same genre of music. Like, if they were both metal bands, then I could

[05:07] see maybe a little something there, but they're not. So, what K-pop Demon Hunters is offering is an entirely different kind of music that would never be misconstrued with metal that Demon Hunter provides. As far as merchandising

[05:21] and [ __ ] goes, I don't think Demon Hunter the band has like plushy little mascots and stuff like that or like K-pop style merch. It's entirely different kinds of merch that would never get confused or like they meant to

[05:36] buy Demon Hunter merch and accidentally got K-pop Demon Hunters merch. Like these two things would never cross except for this one very specific example that they're including here to showcase consumer confusion between

[05:49] these names. Consumers may wrongfully attribute Defendants product to the marketplace presence could lead fans to perceive Demon Hunter itself as somehow affiliated with or derived from the hit film. As an example, they include in the

[06:02] filing an email from a person who spent $500 on top tier tickets to a Demon thinking that they'd been taking their five and six-year-old girls to a K-pop Demon Hunters show. Is there any way to refund me or get me credit or something?

[06:17] be able to purchase tickets to the actual K-pop Demon Hunters show. The band's filing says that despite being the senior user with decades of invested goodwill, Hidelane has effectively been pushed aside by defendants with deeper

[06:31] pockets and a larger foot footprint. The complaint accuses the defendants of being massive companies that jealously guard and enforce their own intellectual the rights of others in pursuit of profits. I don't disagree with the

[06:45] sentiment at the end there, but I just don't think it actually is applicable to this situation at all. the example they give. I don't know why we'd be catering to someone that oblivious in the first place. I like I don't think that's very

[06:57] strong. How are you spending $500 and you don't even read the name of the entirely your fault. You shouldn't be coddled or anything for that. Like, you [ __ ] up. You didn't even read what you

[07:10] were buying. K-pop Demon Hunters is an entirely different, very observably different name than just demon hunter. like and it all you have to do is just have your [ __ ] peepers open to notice that you're spending $500 and don't even

[07:25] know what you're buying. That's crazy to me. And I don't think that's because of people just not even bothering to do the bare minimum of seeing where their money is even going for what they're spending. They like I don't that that to me that

[07:39] does nothing. one example from one extremely extremely like I guess fugated out geriatric consumer who just didn't bother to look at the names doesn't do enough to

[07:53] convince me that this is a common occurrence that people are confusing occurrence that people are confusing K-pop demon hunters with demon hunter the metal band now anyway they're demanding a jury trial and asking the

[08:05] court to restore what it describes as its rightful interest in the demon hunter trademark arc and the goodwill built around it over more than two decades. They're demanding that Netflix be prevented from using the K-pop Demon

[08:17] Hunter's name and are asking for restitution and damages. I again I just don't see it. I really don't. Demon Hunter is not exclusive to just this band. That is an occupation you find in so many pieces of media out

[08:32] there like in games and in movies, anime, like all over the place. Demon really don't see how there's any meat on the bones here. Like, is this the only Hunter in their name now from this point forward? Like, K-pop Demon Hunters isn't

[08:49] just stealing their name. Like, again, it's a very normal name. And it's it's a very normal name. And it's integrated into K-pop Demon Hunters. So, they trying to say that they are the only ones that can ever have Demon

[09:01] Hunter in their name now for fear of confusion? Cuz to me, that doesn't seem right. Then in that case, would you then start making arguments that like rise against and rage against the machine? Uh there should be like a a trademark

[09:14] against appears in both of them and can cause confusion. And in fact, those two occupy closer genres of music than K-pop like is that is that where these things are heading? Another easy one, Three

[09:28] Days Grace verse three doors down. I mean, they both have three in the name. There's also three words in their name. Those would be probably easier to confuse than Demon Hunter verse K-pop demon hunters because again, they both

[09:43] occupy the same genre. They are both rock bands. So again, I think it would actually be easier to confuse those two than it would be to confuse [ __ ] K-pop demon hunters with Demon Hunter, the metal band. I think it's a very

[09:58] unique case where someone accidentally purchased $500 tickets to their show Hunters. I think that person was paying no attention and it's their fault.

[10:11] Entirely their fault. I don't believe these are easy to confuse. I don't the products and services offered here between K-pop Demon Hunters and Demon Hunter the Metal Band. Not only is like the merchandising and everything night

[10:25] and day different, not even remotely comparable, the music isn't comparable, and really I think the names are easily distinguishable from one another. There distinguishable from one another. There is K-pop as the very first word in K-pop

[10:38] It like it's to me, I just find it very silly. Anyway, just wanted to yap about silly. Anyway, just wanted to yap about it a little bit. That's it. T.