Last week, a Boston event planning company called Blue Ivy Events won a legal battle against singer Beyoncé and Jay-Z. Time magazine reported that Beyonce and her legal team filed a petition to trademark “Blue Ivy” in January to trademark the name of her firstborn, in part to protect the moniker for future use in a line of baby products. But it turns out their bundle of joy was not the only one to have been dubbed Blue Ivy in recent years: the name was first in use by a Boston-based wedding planner company, Blue Ivy Events, which became embroiled in the battle to save its name after the copyright filing.
On Tuesday, the courts sided with the owner of Blue Ivy Events which has been operating under the name since 2009. A judge ruled to let the company keep its name, and the Carters now have no legal rights to reserve it, Time reports.
The Boston event planners evidently don’t mind that the famous family chose the name for their baby girl, and in fact seem rather proud of it. The company’s website prominently displays a Jay-Z and Boston with the caption, “Congrats to our soul mate couple with baby Blue Ivy!!!”
The entrepreneurial Carters made the trademark request just weeks after their daughter’s birth because the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office had already received requests from others who wanted to claim the name for their own. And many others tried to capitalize on it as well. A New York fashion designer unsuccessfully attempted to trademark “Blue Ivy Carter NYC” for use in a children’s clothing line, the New York Daily News reported in February.
