A MICKEY MOUSE CASE?

The Guardian reports that Disney may have to sell its South African Mickey Mouse trade mark. Disney is currently engaged in a court battle with the relatives of Solomon Linda, the original composer of “The Lion Sleeps Tonight”. Disney used the song in both the film and the stage play of The Lion King, and now the composer’s family is claiming $1.6m in royalties. Though Linda sold the copyright in the song in 1939, his heirs are claiming that it should have reverted back to them 25 years back to his death in 1962. A court in Pretoria has said that, should the family win, over 240 trade marks owned by Disney, including Mickey Mouse, could be used to pay the family.



The IPKat finds this a bit worrying. Surely the Mickey Mouse trade mark is so well known that its use by anyone other than Disney will seriously confuse consumers.



Mickey Mouse here and here

Let sleeping lions lie here and here

Dead lions here, here and here