Old Town Brewing Settles Trademark Dispute with City of Portland

 

Old Town Brewing has come to a welcome agreement with the City of Portland for use of the iconic leaping deer image the brewery trademarked for their logo, based on the Portland sign on the west end of the Burnside bridge. Recap on how this trademark dispute got started in the first place here. The agreement satisfies both parties but is especially a win for Old Town Brewing, who honestly and legally trademarked the image as it relates to beer.

More from the announcement: 

“I am pleased that we have arrived at a mutually beneficial solution that ensures the City of Portland can effectively protect the Portland sign as a landmark, while also protecting the trademark rights of Old Town Brewing,” said Mayor Wheeler. “It was important to me to reach an agreement so that we could each return our focus to our core missions with a strengthened partnership.”

“This was a challenging process,” said Adam Milne, founder and owner of Old Town Brewing. “Once the Mayor directly engaged on the issue, we felt an immediate difference in the tone and tenor of the negotiations. I appreciate his support of local small businesses and of Portland craft brewing.”

The agreement addresses the following points:

• The City will amend its pending trademark applications to exclude beer, wine, and liquor; Old Town Brewing will not object to the City’s amended applications or the City’s licensing of the Portland Oregon Sign for any purpose outside of the field of alcoholic beverages. 

• The City and Old Town Brewing will file the agreement with USPTO so that both parties can advance their pending and future trademark applications. 

• The City may grant licenses for the Portland Oregon sign for limited local alcoholic beverage-related uses, such as festivals/events and to local alcoholic beverage trade organizations for advertising purposes only, and not for inclusion on any product labels or packaging.

• The City and Old Town Brewing will cooperate in enforcement of their respective trademarks.

• Because of the constraints of the City of Portland’s Charter, the City cannot enter into a permanent agreement with Old Town Brewing. The parties are entering into the longest-term agreement possible – a 5-year agreement with the ability to renew for an additional 5 years.

“I strongly encourage future administrations to maintain this policy,” said Mayor Wheeler. “It is in the best interests of the City of Portland that our mutually beneficial agreement with Old Town Brewing be extended when its term expires in the future.”

Milne and Mayor Wheeler have agreed to sit for a beer (or two) when their schedules allow to discuss ways the City can further partner with local craft brewers to support this important industry.