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"SKZOO is not SK Inc.": JYP Wins Complete Victory in Stray Kids Trademark Lawsuit

[비즈한국] JYP Entertainment has successfully secured the trademark for ‘SK034730ZOO,’ the character brand of its group Stray Kids. When the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) rejected the trademark registration on the grounds that it was similar to the trademark of ‘SK Inc.,’ JYP filed a lawsuit against KIPO. The court sided with JYP, stating that “there is no risk of confusion.”

SKZOO consists of animal characters based on the members of Stray Kids. JYP has released not only merchandise such as dolls and figurines but also KakaoTalk emoticons featuring these characters. JYP filed for the SKZOO trademark in March 2022, but the Korean Intellectual Property Office put a stop to it.

In August 2022, KIPO rejected the SKZOO trademark application, citing it as “similar to the registered trademark of SK Inc.” The product categories for which the application was rejected include Class 14 (precious metals, accessories, etc.), Class 16 (stickers, photos, etc.), Class 25 (footwear, clothing, etc.), and Class 28 (concert light sticks, character dolls, etc.).

The key issue was whether SKZOO could be split into "SK" and "ZOO" and be misread as "SK-Zoo." JYP appealed the decision to the Intellectual Property Trial and Appeal Board, but the appeal was dismissed. The Board ruled that "it easily brings to mind the well-known prior trademark 'SK,' and there is a high possibility of confusion or misidentification that the products are produced or sold by an entity with a special relationship with the SK Group."

JYP then appealed to the Patent Court. In this lawsuit, KIPO argued that "'SKZOO' starts with the letters 'SK' and is similar in appearance and pronunciation to the trademarks used by SK Inc., creating a risk that consumers might be confused about the source." Conversely, JYP countered that "'SKZOO' is a combination of 'SKZ,' an abbreviation for Stray Kids, and 'ZOO,' representing a zoo, and is a brand with an entirely different concept and image."

Ultimately, the court accepted JYP’s argument. In November 2024, the court ruled that "the two trademarks are clearly distinguishable in terms of appearance, pronunciation, and concept, and their overall impression and the images they evoke are also different," concluding that "there is no possibility that consumers will perceive the two trademarks as originating from the same source." Furthermore, the court declared the Intellectual Property Office’s rejection "unlawful" and ordered the reversal of the Board's decision. Accordingly, the trademark registration for SKZOO in Class 25 was officially announced on January 22. It is expected that the other product categories for which SKZOO was previously rejected will also be registered sequentially.

Experts note that the "brand awareness" established prior to the application played a crucial role in this ruling.

Park Yeon-joo, a patent attorney at The Hoe Patent & Law Firm, explained, "Usually, the pronunciation of a trademark is determined by general English linguistic knowledge. However, this ruling was decided based on the actual usage at the time of the trademark application. Moving forward, it seems possible to adopt a strategy of consistently using a differentiated pronunciation prior to trademark filing to increase the likelihood of successful registration."

Yoon Shin-woo, the lead patent attorney at Biz & Patent Law Firm, also analyzed, "The Patent Court determined that it is most natural to pronounce it as 'SKZOO' (pronounced 'Seu-ki-zoo') rather than 'SK-Zoo,' based on facts such as Stray Kids' active global presence, music videos exceeding 100 million views, and extensive coverage in online media, all of which contributed to gaining significant domestic recognition. It appears that the awareness of SKZOO was what overturned the decision of the Intellectual Property Trial and Appeal Board."

With this victory, JYP is now set to accelerate its global content business utilizing SKZOO. Last December, Stray Kids became the first artist in the world to have six consecutive albums reach No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart.