Twentieth Century Fox may be forced to change the name of hit TV show Glee after losing the first round of its Appeal Court battle with UK comedy club chain with the same name

  • High Court held in 2014 that Fox infringed on Comic Enterprises trademark
  • The entertainment giant lost its first appeal against the ruling today
  • But it plans to take case to European courts in bid to avoid name change
  • Glee first broadcast in 2009 and has gone onto become a global franchise 

Twentieth Century Fox could be forced to change the name of hit television series Glee in the UK after losing an Appeal Court legal battle with a British comedy club chain of the same name.

The media giant today lost its first appeal against a 2014 ruling at the High Court in London which held that Fox had infringed the trademark of Comic Enterprises Ltd who run Glee Clubs.

Fox bosses said it would be a 'disaster' if it had to change the Glee name, which is worth millions of dollars and has been expanded into a franchise that includes worldwide tours, CDs and reality television competitions. 

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Twentieth Century Fox is fighting a legal battle to avoid having to change the name of hit show Glee, pictured

Twentieth Century Fox is fighting a legal battle to avoid having to change the name of hit show Glee, pictured

The use of the name was found to infringe the trademark of Comic Enterprises Ltd, which runs a series of similarly named comedy clubs, in a High Court ruling in 2014

The use of the name was found to infringe the trademark of Comic Enterprises Ltd, which runs a series of similarly named comedy clubs, in a High Court ruling in 2014

Deputy High Court judge Roger Wyand QC made the High Court ruling over the infringement in July 2014, but rejected a claim Fox was guilty of passing off because he ruled that in law there had been no misrepresentation.

Both sides appealed but Lord Justice Kitchin, sitting with Lady Justice Arden and Lord Justice Lloyd Jones dismissed them both. 

In its action, Fox quoted the Oxford English dictionary saying 'glee club' refers to choral singing societies in general.

But the High Court judge ruled that it was 'fair and equitable' to order Fox to stop using 'Glee' as the title for the series.

He added: ' I do not accept that re-titling the series would be such an expensive and difficult task as is suggested in the evidence.

'I have no explanation as to the technical difficulties in the actual re-titling or the cost of that. 

'The major cost and problem being relied upon is the cost of communicating the new name to the public in such a way that they realise that this is the new identity for their beloved old series. 

'However I do not see this as being such an insurmountable problem as is suggested.'

Both sides appealed but Lord Justice Kitchin, sitting with Lady Justice Arden and Lord Justice Lloyd Jones dismissed them both.

Glee, pictured, was first broadcast in the UK in 2009 and has gone on to spawn a franchise including CDs, a live tour and reality TV competitions 

Glee, pictured, was first broadcast in the UK in 2009 and has gone on to spawn a franchise including CDs, a live tour and reality TV competitions 

The show's stars include the late Cory Monteith, left, and Lea Michele, centre, 

The show's stars include the late Cory Monteith, left, and Lea Michele, centre, 

He revealed that the court fight was not yet over as both sides want to argue that the rulings are incompatible with European law.

Twentieth Century Fox have already been ordered to pay £100,000 on account of damages which could run into millions.

In rejecting the appeal over the finding of infringement Lord Justice Kitchin said 'there exists a likelihood of confusion.'

Comic Enterprises opened its first Glee Club in 1994 providing venues for live stand up comedy. It now has venues in Birmingham, Cardiff, Nottingham and Oxford.

The Sky 1 TV programme about an American high school singing club was first broadcast in the UK in 2009, and has been sold to many countries around the world. It has also sold close to 3.5 millions songs in the UK alone. 

Pictured: Glee Club in Birmingham. Comic Enterprises opened its first club in 1994

Pictured: Glee Club in Birmingham. Comic Enterprises opened its first club in 1994

He said he had been told many times during the hearing how this series is a 'blockbuster' and he found it 'hard to believe that the cost of re-titling and publicising of the new name would be so prohibitive compared to the value of the series.'

He added: 'I think that an injunction is necessary to protect the claimant's intellectual property. 

'Whilst it may well be true that the fan base for the programme will still think of the programme as 'Glee' they will be made aware of the fact that it cannot be called 'Glee' anymore because of the trade mark rights of the claimant.'

He said the re-titling should allow a reference to the programme 'previously known as 'Glee'.' 

It could include a reference to a name that features in the programme such as the name of the High School.

Comic Enterprises had sought £1.25m damages on account of their full claim which depends on an account of profits, and could run into several million pounds. 

A spokesman for Twentieth Century Fox Television said: 'We note the Court of Appeal's decision and welcome its consideration of the outstanding issues. 

'We remain committed to proving the merits of our case and to delivering Glee to all of its fans in the UK.'

Glee will continue to air under the same name in the UK and the Court of Appeal has yet to make a final decision on the trademark validity, with both parties invited to submit additional arguments.

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