Monster Energy vs BabyMonster: YG Entertainment wins trademark lawsuit in Singapore

It seems like for a certain energy drink company, the word 'monster' is a trigger — not to run away, but to go into legal battle.

According to court documents, the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) has recently come to a conclusion about a case between Monster Energy Company and South Korean entertainment company YG Entertainment on Dec 29, 2023.

In 2020 and 2021, YG Entertainment applied for trademarks for BabyMonster and BabyMonsters in Singapore for their new girl group.

BabyMonster debuted in November 2023 as a seven-member idol group, consisting of Ruka, Pharita, Asa, Ahyeon, Rami, Rora and Chiquita with their single Batter Up. They will be releasing a second single Stuck in the Middle on Feb 1.

The application was contested by Monster Energy Company, which has registered 33 trademarks in Singapore, with many of them including the word 'monster', under the pretext that the names which YG Entertainment wished to register are similar to their earlier trademarks.

After some investigation, which included comparing Monster Energy to BabyMonster and breaking down the definitions of the words "monster", "baby" and "BabyMonster(s)", the judge found that both brands were dissimilar in many ways.

Thus, YG Entertainment found themselves on the winning end, keeping BabyMonster's name and becoming about $17,000 richer with Monster Energy Company having to pay the award costs to them.

This is not the first time trademarking the word 'monster' in Singapore has set off alarm bells for the energy drink company.

Just three days earlier on Dec 26, 2023, IPOS had also settled a case between Monster Energy Company and South Korean luxury eyewear brand Gentle Monster over a similar matter.

Once again, Monster Energy Company's claim was dismissed by the court.

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yeo.shuhui@asiaone.com

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