TLC Network Sued for Trademark Infringement
CakeBoss software company refuses to be conflated with Chef Bartolo "Buddy" Valastro.
August 01, 2010 at 08:00 PM
2 minute read
The original version of this story was published on Law.com
It turns out, a Cake Boss isn't just an outspoken New Jersey cake creator; it's also a brand of business management software for professional cake bakers. And the CakeBoss software won't likely be mistaken for TLC star Bartolo “Buddy” Valastro much longer.
In a suit citing trademark infringement, Seattle District Court Judge Richard A. Jones granted a preliminary injunction on July 16 in favor of Masters Software, which produces the CakeBoss software.
Co-owners Kelley Masters and Jon Masters began selling the CakeBoss software in 2007. The TV show “Cake Boss,” however, didn't enter the scene until two years later. The extra publicity hindered rather than helped the software company. As a result of the show's popularity, a huge number of fans inadvertently clicked on the software company's site, entitled, www.CakeBoss.com. The site was overwhelmed with hits and forced to shut down.
According to court papers, TLC and its parent company, Discovery, didn't research sufficiently before adopting the name for their show. “There is no evidence that Discovery tried to determine if Cake Boss was in use in business before it chose the name in February 2009,” the court papers said.
“Prior to this order we felt helpless in defending our small business against the actions of a corporation as big as Discovery Communications,” said the Masters in a statement on their website.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllCoinbase Hit With Antitrust Suit That Seeks to Change How Crypto Exchanges Operate
3 minute readBaker Botts' Biopharma Client Sues Former In-House Attorney, Others Alleging Extortion Scheme
Trending Stories
- 1Supreme Court To Review Second Circuit Decision Striking Down 'Deemed Consent' Law Reaching PLO and PA for Making Payments to 'Martyrs' Who Injure or Kill US Nationals
- 2McDermott Adds Covington, Polsinelli Laterals to Build DC Bench
- 3From TAR to Generative AI: A Revolution in Document Review
- 4Legal Tech's Predictions for E-discovery in 2025
- 5Lessons Learned from the Pager Attack: the Law of War, Warfighting, and the Weaponization of the Supply Chain
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250