Occupy Wall Street to trademark name

Occupy Wall Street's organizers have filed an application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to trademark their movement's name, CNN Money reports.

Attorney Samuel Cohen of the Law Offices of Wylie M. Stecklow, a firm that represents the protestors in Zuccotti Park, told The Associated Press that the filing was a defensive move to stop people from using the Occupy Wall Street name for improper purposes.

In its application, the group states it intends to use the phrase on merchandise, in magazines and newsletters and on a website about the Occupy movement, CNN Money reports.

“To the extent that it is possible, this application is intended to vest trademark rights in ‘Occupy Wall Street’ in the unincorporated association ‘Occupy Wall Street’ as a whole, not in the individual applicants as joint applicants per se,” the application states, according to Politico.

Another applicant, Arizona-based Fer-Eng Investments LLC, filed for the same trademark on the same day. Vince Ferraro of Fer-Eng Investments told CNN Money that he applied for the trademark as a businessman – he wants to sell OWS clothing and bags – and is not part of Occupy Wall Street. Since Ferraro filed his application a few hours after the Occupy Wall Street group, Cohen told CNN Money he is confident that his group will be awarded the trademark.

There is already a pending trademark application for the name "Occupy Wall St,” using the abbreviation for “street,” filed on Oct. 18 by Robert Maresca of West Islip, N.Y., the AP reports.

Maresca and his wife have been silk-screening t-shirts with the phrase on it, and Maresca told CNN Money that he was worried that they might be sued if someone else obtained the trademark. Maresca told CNN Money he would sell the trademark to the Occupy Wall Street group for $1 after he covers his costs.

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