re: The Fender legal issue

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So, where’s everyone at on this issue? PRS acknowledged they got a Cease & Desist from Fender.

I’m Team Fender.

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I likely would be Team Fender.... IF...

1) they had done this decades ago

AND

2) they had sued a US manufacturer in US court

AND

3) this was an actual decision based on evidence

It is my understanding that FMIC sued a Chinese company in German court. The Chinese company never showed so FMIC won by default.

Fender is using this decision as a bully stick to try to force companies based neither in the EU nor Asia to stop doing something FMIC has heretofore not done much about.

Somehow FMIC thinks that because they won a suit against a foreign company in a foreign court by forfeit, that gives them the right to go after everyone worldwide. IANAL, but that seems iffy to me.

My guess is that PRS will fight this AND win. Fender has dragged their feet for almost 70 years. IMO, this is going to damage their brand far more than it will ever help them.

When this group bought the company they were well aware of the patent, trademark copy write status of a Strat. There was none. Fender is run by morons that are not music people. They are gonna fall on their face and piss people off. Here are my 23 SS and 15 G&L Legacy. Both look similar to a Strat but you can find enough differences that distinguish them from a Fender.

The Magnavox is the Starlight 5 watt with 8 inch speaker. Very Fender champ like. Friedman is a Little Sister with a 1x12 Celestion Creamback cab. Suhr is an Hombre aka Brown Face Deluxe clone. I like the Friedman over the Suhr it’s just more versatile in that it offers more gain structures than the Suhr. However the Suhr does that ZZ Top Tres Hombres album tone. Friedman covers the Marshall JTM 45 classic rock tones.

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These owners haven’t been around for 70 years. They paid a lot of money for very valuable intangible assets and they are trying to protect them.

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Servco has been majority owner since 2020. If they didn’t understand how that shape has been used and varied for the last 70 years, they neglected their due diligence. If their intent all along was to try to “protect” something that has failed to be protected for 70 years, they fail to understand the industry as well as previous judgements IMO. I guess Servco didn’t learn anything from Henry J’s and his successor’s disastrous tenure at Gibson.

I can’t see a situation where FMIC is able to get every manufacturer to stop selling and destroy their inventory. That’s a lot of money so companies like PRS are going to fight.

The best I can see is Fender somehow getting a license or royalty payment for use of the shape. But then, what EXACTLY is the shape? Are two humbucker superstrats too close? Single pup Kramers? (Owned by Gibson btw). If someone changes the belly cut, is that enough? NOTHING has been defined.

I think Paul Reed needs to link up with Gibson. Together they have as much or more firepower as FMIC. Heck Gibson might be able to repair some of the damage they did to their brand.

I do agree, however, that the clickbait on YouTube is hyperbolic.

Can Martin sue Fender for dreadnaught acoustic shape?

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This lawyer/ guitarist explains very clearly, Fender is taking the piss as the Brits would say.

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i prefer this take:

Frick Fender. They will lose just like they did in 2009.

"Fender is going to lose all their customers that are currently buying Fender knockoffs" is a heckuva take.