Penn State Marks on Merch Don’t Inherently Infringe, Judge Says

Vintage Brand LLC’s use of retro Penn State University logos don’t necessarily mean consumers perceive their apparel and merchandise as licensed by the school, a Pennsylvania federal court said.

Penn State—which accused Vintage of trademark infringement last year—failed to disprove Vintage’s claim that consumers see the school’s name and old logos merely as expressions of support for the university, not a sign the school supports the product, the US District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania said Thursday. That resulted in denial of its motion to dismiss Vintage’s counterclaims seeking to cancel Penn State marks for merchandise for abandonment ...