Honestly, I didn't like them before I saw this, but I'll never drink another one again. Watch the vid below and feel free to comment and pass along. This guy's beer could make horse piss taste like fine wine for all I know, but I'll support his brewery as much as I can until justice prevails.
~A
__________________ "Late at night I would listen to the voices of the American masters, Tony Tennille, Debby Boone, Anne Murray who was actually a Canadian working in the American idiom. And then there were the crypto-homo rockers: Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, David Bowie who was actually an idiom working in America and Canada."
~Hedwig CBTMA - Member
07 CrewMax Limited 5.7L - Radiant Red - hardwired Valentine 1, TRD Sway Bar (debating a drop kit)
-----------------------------------
08 Highlander Sport - Black - mods include whatever the wife will let me do to her brand new baby, which at this point is exactly nothing.
He's right. It is scary, and it isn't a world I want to live in.
No, I've never had a Monster, never will now. But the next time I'm at the beer and wine store, I will be looking to see if they have anything from the Rock Art Brewery.
__________________
If Buddha is burning in hell, I'd better pack my summer clothes.
"Courage is being scared to death… and saddling up anyway." - John Wayne.
"A lot of people run a race to see who is fastest. I run to see who has the most guts." Steve Prefontaine
those big corporations pay big bucks for brand identity. and if they let it get diluted, they have no recourse to protect it in the future. i don't know if this guys label has any similarities to the drink, which i don't drink and could not tell you what the label looks like, but if it is a rip off, the corp is in their right. If the guy is doing this as a limited promotion, he should use the court system, tell the big corp his lawyer will see them in court and just drag it out until the promo is over.
this guy may be mad, he may be right, but then again it could be he is using this to promote his beer and get it national recognition. We may be being duped.
Any vermonters heard of this?
Well, I drink Monster and they currently fund the worlds best sporting event bar none...... the Supercross/Motocross series here in the U.S. So that brewery can STFU!
Seriously, not sure I support either side. But I can see several points, which are conveniently left out in the video:
1) This stuff happens all the time, it is not an isolated case here.
2) All documentation they show says they have APPLIED for the Vermonster trademark. Maybe it's been approved, but I'd think they would show that trademark documentation to back up the claim. Besides, I would think if the trademark were already approved, Monster would have to complain to the U.S. Gov't, but then I'm no lawyer.
3) It doesn't seem unreasonable to assume that one day Monster will want to sell more than Energy Drinks. So when they start selling beer, it would in fact be plausible for someone to mistake the two.
4) If the guy is from Vermont, why not name it the Vermont-ster and be done with it?
/Mike
__________________
2001 2WD Silver Tundra: 4x4 TRD springs, Daystar 1", Carson AAL, red/blue Bilsteins, 265/75 Revo's, IS kit(minus bumper) and rims(hand polished), RF851X amp, Alpine HU, JL 6.5"XR comps, Qlogic with JL 8W3V2 subs. 185k miles and counting......
2005 Silver Sienna LE with 12" Overhead DVD
those big corporations pay big bucks for brand identity. and if they let it get diluted, they have no recourse to protect it in the future. i don't know if this guys label has any similarities to the drink, which i don't drink and could not tell you what the label looks like, but if it is a rip off, the corp is in their right. If the guy is doing this as a limited promotion, he should use the court system, tell the big corp his lawyer will see them in court and just drag it out until the promo is over.
this guy may be mad, he may be right, but then again it could be he is using this to promote his beer and get it national recognition. We may be being duped.
Any vermonters heard of this?
I'm as skeptical as the next guy. But...
Here's Monster Energy Drink's logo:
Here's the "Vermonster" logo:
The fonts are different. Someone else will have to speak for the colors (I'm color blind) but they seem to be different. The beer's logo has a picture of a farmscape. Monster Drink has a big "M" on a black background. Hardly similar, IMO.
If the brewer is using this to draw attention to his product, then I see that as a "make lemonade out of lemons" situation. I can't imagine a small business person inviting a large corporation to sue him and then crying foul afterward, but then again I am only guessing at the motives of everyone involved.
~A
__________________ "Late at night I would listen to the voices of the American masters, Tony Tennille, Debby Boone, Anne Murray who was actually a Canadian working in the American idiom. And then there were the crypto-homo rockers: Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, David Bowie who was actually an idiom working in America and Canada."
~Hedwig CBTMA - Member
07 CrewMax Limited 5.7L - Radiant Red - hardwired Valentine 1, TRD Sway Bar (debating a drop kit)
-----------------------------------
08 Highlander Sport - Black - mods include whatever the wife will let me do to her brand new baby, which at this point is exactly nothing.
There doesn't seem to be any thing that people would mistake the two. And monster is not a name that anyone can claim. the monster people may just be hoping he guy won't fight back. cease orders don't have to be legal for legal people to send them out.
the energy drink people if they are not marketing beer, don't have the right to keep other products from using the name.
I still think the guy should cough up the 65k and take a shot at them. they have to prove their case, not him.
Monster is crap. It's a crap drink, company and I hope it dies. LOL. If they're beer tastes anything like the drink, it would be the worst beer ever created. Worse than Keystone Light!
meh, it is what it is. Is Monster being a little touchy, sure? But this type of thing happens ALL THE TIME (as was stated before). If Rock Art wanted to cover its bases, it could have done a trademark search as a CYA beforehand to make sure they were clear.
__________________ Want to know what's ironic? My Polish grandparents who were captured during the Warsaw Uprising.
Grandmother was enslaved in a German concentration camp and forced to make artillery shells for the 3rd Reich. Grandfather was in German and Soviet POW camps...ending up in Siberia. After WWII, they moved to the USA to be free, but Obama has turned it into the USSA...Grandaddy is rolling in his grave. CBTMA Member
There doesn't seem to be any thing that people would mistake the two. And monster is not a name that anyone can claim. the monster people may just be hoping he guy won't fight back. cease orders don't have to be legal for legal people to send them out.
the energy drink people if they are not marketing beer, don't have the right to keep other products from using the name.
I still think the guy should cough up the 65k and take a shot at them. they have to prove their case, not him.
Well obviously it IS a name someone can claim, they have it trademarked. There are many Monster products, a quick search and you'll find Monster Cables are the most aggressive at defending their brand.
I just don't think it's a cut and dry as saying, Monster is evil, picking on a poor little guy. A matter of principle? Maybe. But for such a small microbrew, I'd imagine most would just change the name and avoid all the headache. Definitely in it, at least partly, for the notoriety.
And the fact that Monster is not making beer NOW, has no bearing I don't think. Then again, like I said, I'm not a lawyer.
__________________
2001 2WD Silver Tundra: 4x4 TRD springs, Daystar 1", Carson AAL, red/blue Bilsteins, 265/75 Revo's, IS kit(minus bumper) and rims(hand polished), RF851X amp, Alpine HU, JL 6.5"XR comps, Qlogic with JL 8W3V2 subs. 185k miles and counting......
2005 Silver Sienna LE with 12" Overhead DVD
so why doesn't monster cable wipe out monster energy?
Completely different products....one is food, the other electronic/peripheral.
Monster is going after Rock art, because they both make, not just consumables, but drinks.
Also, it becomes more gray when the trademarked name is a common word like "Monster" or "Dog" or whatever. If were warring over a name like "Viagara", then it would be more black and white.
__________________ Want to know what's ironic? My Polish grandparents who were captured during the Warsaw Uprising.
Grandmother was enslaved in a German concentration camp and forced to make artillery shells for the 3rd Reich. Grandfather was in German and Soviet POW camps...ending up in Siberia. After WWII, they moved to the USA to be free, but Obama has turned it into the USSA...Grandaddy is rolling in his grave. CBTMA Member
The guy in the video is correct. I had to change the name of my buisiness for the same reason. Affordable mattresses & more was me in lil ole ky. 1 store, and Mattress and more had thier attorney call me and tell me that if i didn't remove the "and more" I would be in court. The attorney for them was nice, but basically, he felt he could win the infringment case as the laws have recently been changed, and even if not, they would run me out of money. I have 1 store, they have 40.
either way, the guy in the video is correct. any large corp who feels you are infringing on them can sue you and run you out of money till they win. Whomever first established the name doesn't matter, they can keep you in court till you are out of money. His point is correct, but sadly in america we sold out long ago to corporate greed and no one is fighting it cause it's cheaper to keep a person in court than to offer a settlement.
I applaud his effort and desire to fight, as i just changed the name and help to soil thier rep in my town as much as i can and at every chance i get.
I hope one day to take my little store, with new name, and open as many as i can across the street from every store they own.
but that is my long term goal.
I wish him luck, but it's not justice for all anymore. It's justice for money.
Like Monster Energy Drinks? I don't any more.
Re: Like Monster Energy Drinks? I don't any more.
There are many Monster products, a quick search and you'll find Monster Cables are the most aggressive at defending their brand. 
Linear Mode
