K-pop celebrities` names being registered as trademarks

What do K-pop stars Psy, Girls` Generation and 2NE1 have in common? Their individual or group names have been registered as trademarks.

Psy, a global celebrity with his hit "Gangnam Style," and other Korean entertainers spreading the Korean Wave worldwide are registering their names as trademarks for image protection and the launch of new ventures.

According to the Korean Intellectual Property Office on Tuesday, trademark applications related to music albums and entertainment business surged in 2010. An average of 2,400 cases were recorded per year between 2005 and 2009, and the figure rose to 3,328 in 2010 and 4,825 last year. This year, 4,185 cases have been registered through October, with the number predicted to rise to 5,300 by year`s end.

Large entertainment agencies are registering as trademarks not only music albums and entertainment businesses, but also cosmetics, clothing, stationery and food. Examples include "Psy Lunchbox" and "Girls` Generation Cosmetics." The names of celebrities and specific products and services are being applied. Entertainment agencies are making inroads into "blue ocean" businesses to create entertainer-related products aimed at expanding their business scope and prevent other institutions and individuals from using entertainers` names illegally.

Such trademarks have been registered abroad. JYP, one of Korea`s top three entertainment agencies, has applied for a trademark for singer Rain in the U.S., the U.K., China, Japan, Australia and Singapore. Applications were filed for the singer`s English and Chinese names as well as his Korean name. YG, another major entertainment promoter, has also applied for trademarks in Europe, Japan, Australia, Singapore and Vietnam.

jhk85@donga.com