Sunday, July 1, 2007

Mansion Miami’s Boston Mash-Up

Star Island Entertainment, the management company behind toney Miami Beach nightclub Mansion and several other top South Beach hotspots, has filed suit in U.S. District Court in Boston against the Hub Club alleging trademark infringement over the Boston club’s use of the name “Mansion.” The Miami company is seeking damages amounting to three times the profit made since the Boston club opened on February 15, 2007.

The Hub Mansion club is located on Boylston Street in Boston and is owned and operated by the Lyons Group and Big Night Entertainment.

The Boston club’s website mansionboston.com presents a soundtrack that curiously begins with the words “This is not Miami” and goes on to state “This is not Milano,” “This is not New York,” “This is not Chicago,” “This is not San Paulo…” and several other cities.

Trademark Office records show several recent trademark applications for “Nightclub services” and “Bar Services,” on behalf of the Miami management company which contain the word “Mansion,” but none of the applications have been approved as of yet for publication on the principle trademark register. The earliest application is dated September 29, 2006.

Obtaining a trademark is often a lengthy process which is rarely completed in less than one year. Trademarks are registered on either the “Principle” or Supplemental” register, and allows for the same mark (word or words) to be registered by different companies in different categories. However, in this case, both companies would fall into the same general category and could potentially be “confusingly similar” to the public.

This pending legal battle holds special significance for Star Island Entertainment due to the Miami management company’s planned expansion into the Las Vegas nightlife market where the company may again seek to use the well-known name “Mansion” for a nightlife venue.

Playboy Enterprises International also owns several trademarks containing the word “Mansion” for various categories such as “computer games” and “video games.”

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