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I came across this article in SPIEGEL ONLINEThat an international company as large as Red Bull would sue a tiny Polish children's charity because its slogan is SIMILAR to theirs made me angry.
Perhaps you can post it on your website, and consider starting an online Boycott petition. ( I am NOT Marta Solarz, the reporter mentioned at the end of the article. Coincidentally we share the same first name.)
I have sent a message at the RED BULL WEBSITE
http://www.redbullusa.com/en/CompanyPage/htmlCompanyPage.action
My comment to RED BULL is pasted below the article.
Thanks,
Marta
http://www.spiegel.de/international/business/0,1518,545495,00.html
Red Bull Clips Polish Charity's Wings
By Charles Hawley in Berlin
For seven years, a Polish charity has been collecting money for impoverished children under the slogan "give children wings." The drinks maker Red Bull thinks it copied the slogan -- and is taking the charity to court.
The energy drink Red Bull claims that it will "give you wings." But should you be so impudent as to use a phrase that sounds anything like the company's oft-repeated slogan, you should know that Red Bull is also in the business of clipping wings.
That, at least, has been the experience of a Polish foundation dedicated to collecting money for schoolbooks and clothing for impoverished children. The group, called Fundacja Gra yny Malecha, has been in operation for seven years -- and it chose the phrase "give children wings" as its slogan.
Late last year, though, Red Bull decided that the foundation, which is named after its founder, was infringing on its trademarked territory, and demanded that charity, based in the Silesian town of Chorzow, abandon its catchphrase. When Fundacja Gra yny Malecha refused, Red Bull filed a complaint with the patent office in Warsaw.
"After seven years of hard work, we are suddenly unable to do anything," Jaroslaw Hola, a volunteer with the foundation, told SPIEGEL ONLINE on Friday. "We can just sit here and cry. We wanted to start a large campaign this year and we already had a sponsor ready to invest hundreds of thousands of Polish zloty. But now, he wants to wait until the issue with Red Bull is settled."
That could take a while. The foundation has decided against accepting a Red Bull offer to pay the foundation €4,000 ($6,250) to change its slogan. Now, the issue will likely go to trial -- meaning up to two years of legal battles the charity cannot afford.
"Everyone in our group is a volunteer and 95 percent of the money we raise goes to the children," Hola said. "Red Bull has money for expensive lawyers, but we don't."
Red Bull, for its part, claims that it has not been playing the role of the bully. Christina Sponer, a spokeswoman for the Austria-based drinks company, told Süddeutsche Zeitung that Red Bull offered to "allow" the charity to continue using their slogan on the basis of an unpaid license. She says the charity refused and demanded €1 million in damages.
That, says Hola, is not true, claiming that no such demand was ever made. "We are furious that Red Bull speaks to us out of their position of power," he complained. "They don't ask; they demand and issue threats."
In an effort to draw attention to its plight, the charity has pinned its hopes on the media and on a signature-gathering campaign on its Web site ( Polish only). But should the case end up in court, it will make it difficult for the charity to continue its work with donors concerned that contributions could end up paying for legal fees rather than helping children.
"For the last year," says Hola, "we have been helping a small boy who has no fingers. We wanted to pay for his surgery this year. But now it is doubtful whether we will be able to find a sponsor."
With reporting by Marta Solarz in Warsaw
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Mu comment to RED BULL
It is TERRIBLE that you are suing a children's charity because their slogan ("give children wings") is SIMILAR to yours ("give you wings")
I have enjoyed Red Bull, but NO MORE!
I will make sure every single person I know in the US hears about this so they can also boycott Red Bull until you drop this lawsuit.
There are MANY energy drink options other than "Red Bull", "Shark" is my new energy drink, readily available in Los Angeles.
These children are in PITIFUL situations. SHAME ON YOU!
