Taylor Swift Attempts To Trademark “Swiftmas,” “1989”
Taylor Swift and the rest of her team have been notoriously litigious (and business-savvy) to protect the pop star’s brand to what, from an outsider’s perspective, may seem like an absurd degree. But just like how she trademarked song lyrics such as “this sick beat” and “Nice to meet you, where you been?” right before embarking on her 1989 world tour, her latest round of trademark applications seem to be aimed at knock-off merchandise manufacturers right before the holiday season.
The Independent reports that her intellectual property company TAS [Taylor Alison Swift] Rights Management has applied for five new trademarks: “Swiftmas,” “Blank Space,” “And I’ll Write Your Name,” “A Girl Named Girl,” and “1989.”
The last two in particular may raise some eyebrows: A Girl Named Girl is the name of a book Swift wrote when she was younger, but probably won’t be published anytime soon. And while it may seem ridiculous to apply for a trademark for a calendar year, the application only covers instances when the date is presented in a “stylized form,” meant to imitate its number of appearances on her album artwork or official merchandise.
The rest of the applications would prevent any competitors (or companies producing knock-offs) from using the phrases on merchandise items or in performances.
Merry Swiftmas!