Red Cross sued over its - Red cross!

J&J, one of the largest drug makers in the world has sued the Red Cross over its use of one of the most famous symbols in the world - the red cross.

The problem is that the Red Cross is not the only organization using this symbol. The red cross also appears on J&J's first-aid kits and bandages.

In the suit, J&J asked the court to force the Red Cross to have "all licensed products with the red-cross emblem destroyed and to permanently enjoin all sales of products bearing the emblem on first-aid, safety-preparedness and related products."

The Red Cross CEO, Mark Everson, called the action "bizarre" and "obscene."

J&J claims the company has been using the red cross since 1887, before the chartering of the Red Cross. J&J trademarked the design consisting of two intersecting red lines of equal length at least "as early as 1906," according to the suit. J&J also claims that the Red Cross only has the right to use the trademark "in connection with nonprofit relief services."

And if you think this is a hoax, do a Google news search.

BrandweekNRX is a blog for marketing professionals. So seriously folks: Is this about the most foolish PR move by any drug company this year? Or is it the worst move in a decade???

Feel free to use the comment section.

- Peter Rost, M.D. is a former VP of Pfizer and the author of Killer Drug and The Whistleblower.

Comments

[oak]

...new guy on staff...i see some up and comer newb, trying to make a name, who somehow convinced enough people that this was a good idea...if the red cross started selling mass amounts of baby powder, then they may be justified...this is just horrible pr...
OAK

[Jonathan Paisner]

It is one of the world’s most recognized symbols. It has become the de facto mark of disaster relief. It is almost universally associated with first aid. Yet this symbol is no mere generic icon signifying that help is on the way. The red cross symbol is owned by and registered to Johnson & Johnson, as it has been for over 100 years. And, for the American National Red Cross, this has suddenly become a problem – pitting one of the country’s most venerable corporations against one of its largest and most iconic non-profits.

Despite J&J’s ownership and use of the mark since the 1880’s, the American National Red Cross has the right to use the red cross by a 1900 Congressional decree in connection with the agency’s founding charter. The red cross has peacefully co-existed on Band-Aid boxes and rescue vans pretty much ever since. However, in a lawsuit brought this week by Johnson & Johnson against The American National Red Cross, J&J claims that the Red Cross is overstepping its bounds and infringing upon the J&J trademark by marketing a range of first aid related products that carry the red cross.

In my mind, J&J is 100% right.

News articles have quoted the president of the Red Cross as calling the lawsuit “obscene…simply so that J&J can make more money.” The American National Red Cross is playing the helpless victim here bullied by Big Business. Please. The Red Cross is a behemoth, with nearly $4 Billion in annual revenues. The Red Cross and its licensing agency and its licensing partners (the companies actually conceiving, making and selling these products) saw the financial opportunity presented by a universally recognized and respected symbol. Greed blinded them to the little Registered mark at the base of Johnson & Johnson’s red cross. To claim the high road here under cloak of the hallowed American National Red Cross is, in a word, shameful.

Red Cross Johnson-Johnson

The Red Cross is a wonderful organization that continues to perform its heroic and selfless mission on a global basis. But that does not give them the right to sell something that isn’t theirs and to (purposefully?) create confusion in the market by placing the American National Red Cross logo on products that compete directly with J&J first aid products that carry their proprietary (and identical) red cross. There is plenty of blame to go around here, from the licensing agency that made these deals (Campbell Associates LLC) to the companies manufacturing these products (like Learning Curve and Steps Ahead) to the American National Red Cross lawyers who let these deals go forward.

And the fallout here may be significant, even for those not involved. Yes J&J will take a hit for going after the Red Cross, even if they are in the right. I would hope that the Red Cross takes a hit for their brazen disregard (in my layman’s view) of US trademark law; ditto for the licensing agency and the licensees that conveniently turned a blind eye to the same. Yet this could also be a setback for other non-profits that could legitimately benefit by the increased visibility and revenues enabled by licensing, if these events give their own leaders and partners pause about the feasibility of building a licensing program. And this could hurt other agencies that may rely on the American National Red Cross for funding, if funds, management and energies become embroiled in and distracted by litigation.

More and more non-profits have woken up to the opportunities presented by licensing, particularly the ability to create funding streams other than charitable donations. In other words, the profit motive. And however noble the charter, non-profits can’t venture into the commercial arena and then insist that the rules defining this arena don’t apply to them.

Kudos to J&J. It could not have been an easy decision to bring the American National Red Cross to court over the iconic symbol. But in addition to everything else it represents, this symbol is an incredibly valuable asset. The Red Cross knows well the value of the red cross, that is why they put it on absolutely everything that carries their name. I still can’t figure out if they were simply being brash or just plain clueless in pretending that this valuable asset was really theirs. Probably a bit of both.

[Sean Dix]

Johnson & Johnson threatened to kill me by sending someone to list the ways that J&J could have killed and make it look like an accident or a suicide if I tried to sue them for keeping Flossrings off the market for over a decade. Considering the ever growing body count from J&J's Ortho Evra patch suing the Red Cross is not beneath them. J&J should be boycotted and should have their corporate charter revoked.

Sincerely,
Sean Dix
The FlossRing Company
www.FlossRings.com

[Lee Davis]

So when I was a combat arms medic with a U.S. Army Field Artillery Battallion and wore the Red Cross Armband,I was actually representing J&J? I should contact them as to negotiate back pay!

[Wendy Harman]

Hello everyone -
This is Wendy from the American Red Cross.

For all who might be interested in the latest events surrounding this case - the judge recently threw out a key part of J&J's complaint.

Here is ARC's press release regarding the ruling:
http://www.redcross.org/pressrelease/0,1077,0_314_7242,00.html

We of course hope this nudges J&J to drop the case altogether.

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[ALAN]

Do you know why ambulances have a blue * on them now and not a red+ ? In the 1970's the RED CROSS sued USDOT for copyrite infringement for using red +'s on ambulances so it seems to me they a getting a dose of their own medicne. The red + had been a sign of neutalitary for over 100 years.

[mike land]

My grandparents still have animosity toward the Red Cross for charging for donuts during WWII. I have been a paid and volunteer Red Cross instructor for 30 years (started at age 14.) I have to remind them that it was not the Red Cross who charged for donuts and coffee. It was the Salvation Army and the U.S. armed services. If money was taken for anything the Red Cross did, it was done by military commands to satisfy foreign governments. The Red Cross never collected for services provided during any war. But I cannot get through to my grandparents and they will take it to their graves.

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