Oscar Bosses Win Trademark Lawsuit

Officials at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences have won a legal battle with Italian television broadcaster Radiotelevisione Italiana (RAI) over the illegal use of the 'Oscar' name.

Academy heavyweights filed a trademark lawsuit against the TV bosses back in 2005, claiming RAI's broadcast of several Italian language Oscar award programmes was an infringement.

Among the titles at issue were Oscar del Vino (Wine Oscars), Oscar della Moda (Fashion Oscars), Oscar TV (TV Oscars) and Oscar del Teatro (Theater Oscars).

Attorneys argued that the Academy continues to maintain the exclusive right to use the name 'Oscar' for awards shows and that the name has not become generic in Italian or any other language.

Academy lawyer David Quinto has confirmed the case has been settled after he and his legal team determined RAI viewers would likely be confused by the network's use of the Academy's trademark.

Details of the settlement between RAI and the Academy have not been made available to the press.

And despite the settlement, other Academy lawsuits against RAI are still underway in Germany, Switzerland and Austria.