POWER 107 parent company fires back at copyright infringement claims
Jonny Wakefield
Edmonton Journal
Updated: November 6, 2019
The company that owns Edmonton’s POWER 107 pop hits station is firing back at broadcasting giant Corus, saying it in no way infringed its copyrights.
Corus sued POWER 107 parent company Harvard Broadcasting in September, claiming POWER 107 ripped off its popular POWER 92 brand. The case is expected to head to court this Friday.
Corus claimed Calgary-based Harvard appropriated branding from the former radio station, which rebranded in the early 2000s and now broadcasts as 92.5 The Chuck. It says Harvard did so to cash in on nostalgia for the POWER 92 brand.
“Not only does the POWER 107 logo reflect the look and feel of the POWER 92 logo, but Harvard states in some materials, and implies in others, that POWER 107 is either a revival of, or is a radio station somehow related to, the former POWER 92,” Corus’s statement of claim says.
The company is seeking a court injunction ordering Harvard to turn over or destroy its POWER 107 signage, marketing materials and even its internet domain name.
But in a 58-page statement of defence filed Oct. 23, Harvard says Corus has no valid claim to the POWER brand.
“Goodwill in a radio station attaches to its current name, logo, slogans, and, most importantly, its associated music format,” the defence statement says. “Long-defunct, discarded and unused names and logo designs have no residual goodwill.”
“The current iteration of the plaintiffs’ Edmonton radio station could revert back to using a ‘Power 92’ name and logo design, but if it played its current music format, the station would still be at the bottom of the ratings.”
Harvard rebranded its Edmonton station to POWER 107 in August. It claims it was in the clear to do so as Corus abandoned its claims to the POWER brand over 16 years ago. Harvard further claims Corus allowed their trademark on POWER 92 to be expunged in 2015.
The defence statement alleges Corus is seeking the court’s protection over its former brand despite changing the station’s name three times and its music format four times.
“The most recent iteration of the plaintiffs’ Edmonton radio station was launched in August 2018 and has languished at or near the bottom of the ratings in listening audience since its inception,” the defence statement says.
“Since the launch of Harvard’s ‘Power 107′ station … the plaintiffs’ Edmonton radio station has not lost any listener audience to Harvard’s station or any advertising revenues relative to its budgeted expectations. The Plaintiffs’ Edmonton radio station has remained at the bottom of the rankings.”
Harvard also points out there are multiple logos in the Canadian radio market similar to the defunct POWER 92 symbol, and notes it includes its own corporate branding on all marketing materials and announces station ownership every hour on air.
Statements of claim and defence contain allegations not proven in court. Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Nancy Dilts is expected to hear Corus’s injunction request in Calgary this Friday.
ref. - https://edmontonjournal.com/news/local- ... ent-claims
Original article/post about Corus: viewtopic.php?f=2&t=33767