Taco John's ends 'Taco Tuesday' dispute with Taco Bell
Comment on this story Comment Gift Article Share
“Taco Tuesday” belongs to the world now. Anyone can utter the phrase, and of course, anyone can celebrate it, and as of today (happy Taco Tuesday?), any company outside New Jersey can use the expression to promote their tortilla-wrapped offerings. That’s because Taco John’s, a Wyoming-based fast-food chain, relinquished its legal claim to the phrase following a challenge brought by Taco Bell.
The smaller brand said it would abandon the service mark it holds through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, citing the cost of legal fees to fight the megachain.
“We’ve always prided ourselves on being the home of Taco Tuesday, but paying millions of dollars to lawyers to defend our mark just doesn’t feel like the right thing to do,” Taco John’s CEO Jim Creel said in a statement.
In an odd arrangement going back decades, Taco John’s had held the rights to the phrase in all states but New Jersey, where the restaurant Gregory’s still holds the honor. In May, Taco Bell had filed two petitions to the patent office seeking to nullify those exclusive rights.
“Taco Bell believes ‘Taco Tuesday’ is critical to everyone’s Tuesday,” the company’s petition to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office said. “To deprive anyone of saying ‘Taco Tuesday’ — be it Taco Bell or anyone who provides tacos to the world — is like depriving the world of sunshine itself.”
Advertisement
Taco John’s, which operates more than 370 restaurants across the country, sought to turn the end of the potential legal battle into a public-relations win. The company announced it would spend money it would have given to its lawyers on a charitable donation, giving $40,000 to the nonprofit Children of Restaurant Employees, which supports workers and their families through health crises and natural disasters. Cheekily, it also challenged Taco Bell and others who would use the phrase — which it called “our litigious competitors” — to make similar gifts.
A Taco Bell representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The ploy seemed to work, with fans praising the company on social media. “Sad to see Taco Bell win, but love that you’re being classy about it. :-),” one tweeted. “Taco John’s for the win!” wrote another.
Taco John’s also invited/shamed NBA star LeBron James, who has appeared in Taco Bell ads, to donate the fees he received for the endorsement.
Some experts had doubted whether Taco John’s, which had previously defended its rights to the phrase, would ultimately prevail. Under trademark law, ubiquitous terms cannot be owned by anyone, said Maggie Mettler, legal director for Yum Brands, Taco Bell’s parent company. Terms such as escalator, aspirin and yo-yo became so common that their trademarks were canceled.
Advertisement
The phrase was born in 1979, when Taco John’s franchisee Dave Olsen, in St. Paul, Minn., came up with a way to boost business on a usually slow weekday. Since then, its use has spread, with cafeterias and other restaurants adopting it to promote their offerings. The hashtag #TacoTuesday is popular on social media, and a search for the phrase on Etsy will yield countless T-shirts, candles and even neon signs.
Taco John’s said it would continue to offer its “Taco Tuesday” special, $2 for two tacos, making it an everyday deal through the end of the month. “While the registration symbol will disappear, Taco John’s will always be the home of Taco Tuesday to its legions of fans across the nation,” the statement said.
Gift this article Gift Article
Source: The Washington Post
